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This was the sun 




Page 113 






NATURE 

MYTHS AND STORIES 


BY 

FLORA J. COOKE 

*% 

Principal of the Francis W. Parker School, Chicago 


WITH ILLUSTRATIONS BY 
DOROTHY DULIN 


REVISED EDITION 


A. FLANAGAN COMPANY 
CHICAGO 


COPYRIGHT, 1919, BY A. FLANAGAN COMPANY 






©Cl. A 5 08887 

JAN -6 1919 


| 





SUGGESTIONS FOR TEACHERS 

This is a completely revised and enlarged edition 
of “Nature Myths and Stories,” first published in 
1892. In it I have retold favorite myths. so that 
children may read them and enjoy them for them¬ 
selves, and I have added stories that may suggest 
to teachers the wealth of good material within reach, 
and encourage them to form the habit of going to 
the best original sources, such as folklore, myth¬ 
ology* the Bible, and great poetry for help in the 
construction and telling of stories. 

I believe that a teacher should put enough of her 
own impulse to create into her story writing or 
story telling to make it a delight to herself as well 
as to her children. 

There are real dangers in adapting myths to 
children, yet the difficulties add to a teacher’s 
satisfaction in the worth-while effort, and if she is 
sensitive to the emotional reactions of children, 
there is constant incentive to growth and improve¬ 
ment in the great art of telling stories which every 
teacher of little children should master as a first 
essential of her profession. 

The myths should be selected, first of all, as good 
literature. They should be stories which the child¬ 
ren will love all their lives. A teacher must feel it 
a duty to keep true to the original idea and to the 
3 


4 


SUGGESTIONS FOR TEACHERS 


spirit of the old story. She may not add carelessly, 
to the inherited classic, facts or fancies of her own. 
Yet, surely she has the right to adapt a story, 
eliminating that which is beyond the experience and 
understanding of little children, if she can do so 
without spoiling the unity and the beauty of the 
story. She is privileged to recognize the universal 
love of children for rhythm, repetition, and action, 
and to put the borrowed ideas into a simple dramatic 
form fitted to interest and give pleasure to them. 

A myth may enhance a child ’s observation of 
natural phenomena and give him an added happi¬ 
ness in the clouds, the trees or the sunset; but he 
should never be forced to interpret its meaning. 

A few stories that are not myths have been in¬ 
cluded in this book, because they are decided favor¬ 
ites of children, and since they are adapted from 
old folk tales and legends, they seem not entirely 
out of place in the collection. There are also a 
number of word pictures or fancies with a basis in 
mythology and in nature imagery, which, though 
they cannot properly be classed either as myths or 
as stories, are intended to suggest to children a 
similar and delightful use of their own imaginations. 

The “Stories of Creation” and “Prometheus” 
are too difficult for all third grade pupils to read, 
but they might be told by the teacher. They are 
placed at the beginning as they emphasize the idea 
of origins—the chief unifying idea of the book. 

F. J. C. 


FOREWORD FOR CHILDREN 


Most of the stories in this book are nature myths 
told in a form easy for you to read. Myths, you 
should know, are answers to questions which people 
of early times asked about the wonders of nature, 
or they are beautiful fancies concerning life and its 
mysteries. Myths grew up, little by little, when 
there were no books on science, geography, his¬ 
tory or religion. You must remember that in that 
far-away time people had to try to answer all their 
own questions. 

These myths were believed by people who lived 
thousands of years ago. Because many of them 
have something that is true and beautiful in them, 
they will live forever. 

In those days no one knew what caused a storm 
or a rainbow. No one knew that the crashing 
thunder and the mocking echo had nothing to do 
with human beings, but obeyed only their own nat¬ 
ural laws. 

It happens that nearly all of these earliest dwell¬ 
ers upon the earth invented similar explanations for 
what they saw. This may be because they lived in 
the same world and saw the same wonders. Often 
myths of races of people living far apart were so 
5 


6 


FOREWORD FOR CHILDREN 


much alike that the greatest scholars cannot under¬ 
stand the reason for it. 

Most of the early peoples worshipped the sun as 
something more than human, as a god—a giver of 
good. Yet from the sky where the life-giving sun 
reigned, death came swiftly in the lightning. Grad¬ 
ually people learned that nearly all their chief 
blessings—water, fire, and air—would at times 
ruthlessly destroy them and all their belongings. 

For this reason, probably, all primitive people 
began to believe that there were gods who ruled 
over them. Good came as a reward when these 
great gods were pleased with mortals. Punishment 
came when people offended them by disobedience. 
And so people began to try to please the gods, or 
gain their favor by sacrifice, by prayer, and by 
building great temples in their honor. 

You will often hear myths spoken of as the 
religion of ancient peoples, but you must not think 
that by religion is meant the religion of today, 
for these old gods have not now a single wor¬ 
shipper on the earth. Therefore you must not con¬ 
fuse their religion with your religion, or their gods 
with your God—Him whom you worship as the 
source of all the love, beauty, goodness, and great¬ 
ness in the world. 




CONTENTS 


PAGE 

Stories of Creation Greek, Norse, Hebrew 13 

. Prometheus A Greek Myth 24 

How the Spark of Fire was Saved An Indian Myth 33 

King Alcinous and the Storm Giants 

Cloud fancies borrowed from the Greek 38 

The Sw'an Maidens Cloud fancies of mist and vapor 43 

Hermes The Greek Cloud Herder 50 

Balder Norse Myth of Spring 56 

Persephone Greek Myth of Spring. Adapted by Helen Ericson 64 
Iris* Bridge A Word Picture—Rainbow 72 

The Bluebird Another Word Picture 75 

How the Robin’s Breast Became Red An Indian Myth 76 

The Red-Headed Woodpecker A Norse Myth 79 


Phaethon 
Story of Sisyphus 
The Pudding Stone 
Daphne 

The Mountain Ash 
The Poplar Tree 
Philemon and Baucis 
Clytie 

How Water Lilies Came to Be 
Araciine 


A Greek Myth 82 
A Mythological Fancy—Waves 87 
Another Mythological Fancy—Rocks 92 
A Greek Myth 95 
A Fairy Story 98 
A Greek Myth 104 
A Greek Myth 107 
A Greek Myth—Sunfloiver 111 
An Indian Legend 116 
A Greek Myth—Spiders 124 


7 


8 


CONTENTS 


Aurora and Tithonus A Greek Myth—Grasshopper 129 

How the Mole Became Blind An Indian Myth 131 

How the Chipmunk Got Its Stripes A Hindu Myth 133 

The Traveling Musicians From Grimm's Fairy Tales 136 

The Donkey and the Salt From Aesop's Fables 146 

King Solomon and the Bee 

From the Bible and Whittier's Poem 149 

King Solomon and the Ants 

From the Bible and Saxe's Poem 153 

The Gods of Ancient Greece 156 

Key to Pronunciation 158 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


“This was the sun”. Frontispiece 


PAGE 

“He made his creature in the image of the gods and called 
it man” ... 27 

“Puma, the monstrous cat, was watching”. 35 

“They beheld the silver ships of the Phaeacians sailing for¬ 
ward to meet them”. 39 

“If you lie very still the Swan Maidens will work their magic 
before your very eyes”. 47 

“He ran after them, chasing them back and forth, across the 
meadow” . 53 

Balder . 57 

“Persephone gathered all the flowers that her apron could hold” 65 

“ ‘She shall be the messenger between heaven and earth’ . 73 

The Bluebird . 75 

“When he saw how tired and sleepy the little boy was, he came 
closer to the fire”. 77 

“Even this, when it was baked, looked as large and fine and 
brown as the others”. 80 

“The fiery horses soon missed the strong, steady hand of their 
master” . 85 

“ ‘You shall forever use your strength to push these stones far 
up on the shore, and they shall forever roll back upon 
you’ ” . 89 

“Let's make balls of the pudding and see who can throw the 
farthest” . 93 


9 















10 ILLUSTRATIONS 

“How unhappy they were when they realized the fairy with 
the cap was gone”. 100 

The Poplar Tree. 104 

“A wonderful thing happened”. 108 

“The children of the village loved them”. 123 

“ ‘Athene can help you no more until you grow less selfish and 
vain'” . 125 

A Grasshopper. 130 

“‘I must save my darlings even if I spoil my tail'”. 134 

“‘Come, we must sing our best,' said the donkey”. 141 

“He hung down his head and went just as slowly as he could”. 147 
“The bees flew straight to the real flowers”. 151 











NATURE MYTHS 
AND STORIES 





STORIES OF CREATION 


HHHERE are two questions which people have 
always asked and which children all over 
the world are still asking in one way or another 
—and these questions are, “How was the world 
created V 9 and “How did mankind first come 
upon the earth V 9 

These are such great questions that people’s 
ideas have always become great in trying to 
answer them. And that is perhaps the reason 
that we have such wonderful stories of the 
creation. 


GREEK STORY OF CREATION 

Many early Greek people thought that Time 
had existed always—before the beginning of 
anything which was then upon the earth. And 
they thought that after ages and ages Time had 
brought forth Chaos, which was a vast black 
emptiness, made of the darkness which was 

13 


14 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

under the earth, and the gloomy night which 
dwelt behind the sunset. And slowly Time 
caused Chaos to be filled up with mist and fiery 
air, and he made the mist to spin around the 
fiery air in the center of it, until it took the 
form of a huge world egg, and the egg con¬ 
tinued to whirl rapidly until it flew into two 
great halves. 

And lo, out of one half came the broad- 
bosomed Earth, and out of the other half came 
the starry vault of Heaven, and from the center 
of the egg came beautiful Love to rule the hearts 
of gods and men. 

Then Mother Earth gave forth the mighty 
towering mountains, the fertile fields, the stony 
plains, the all-encircling seas, and the plants and 
animals wdiich possess them. 

And when Heaven and Earth at length had 
wedded, from their union there came the hun¬ 
dred-handed monsters, the fierce Cyclops and 
the great race of giants called Titans. One of 
these Titans was called Prometheus and another 
was Cronus, and Cronus was the first ruler of 
the world. The head of Cronus was veiled in 
mystery, and in his hand he carried the sickle 
as a symbol of growth and the harvest, and of 


STORIES OF CREATION 


15 


the cutting off and ending of life. And from 
Cronus descended Zeus, the father of all the 
gods. And the titan, Prometheus, made man 
from clay in the image of the gods, as you shall 
hear in another story in this book. 

THE NORSE STORY OF CREATION 

According to certain old records, called the 
Eddas, which give many of the mythical tales 
of the Norse people, the old Norsemen believed 
that there was once a time when there was no 
heaven above and no earth beneath, but only a 
bottomless abyss. And there was in the north 
a world of mist and darkness, in which sprang 
a fountain. Twelve rivers issued from this 
fountain, and when they had flowed far from 
their source, they froze into ice which formed 
layer upon layer and finally filled up the great 
abyss. 

And in the south was a world of fire and light 
and a warm wind arose from the fire and blew 
upon the ice in the abyss and melted it: and a 
vapor arose in the air and formed a cloud from 
which sprang Ymir, the father of all the giants, 
and also a huge cow, Audhumbla, who gave the 


16 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

milk which fed the giant Ymir. And the cow 
got her nourishment by licking the hoarfrost 
and the salt from the ice in the abyss. 

And it happened one day when she was lick¬ 
ing the salt from the stones that there came into 
view the hair of some being, and on the second 
day the whole head was uncovered, and on the 
third day an entire form of beauty, strength, 
and power stood forth upon the earth. This 
new being was the god Bori, father of all the 
gods. 

Bori was great and powerful, but he was 
wicked and cruel, so that finally his three grand¬ 
sons, Odin, Yili, and Ye, slew him. And from 
his flesh they made the dry land, and from his 
blood the seas; his skull became the overarch¬ 
ing heavens, his bones the mountains, and his 
coarse hair, the forests of the earth; his brains 
became the clouds charged with hail and snow. 
From Bori’s eyebrows they made a fence around 
Midgard, or mid-earth, which was afterward to 
become the abode of man. 

Then light was needed and the three grand¬ 
sons, Odin, Yili, and Ye, placed in the heavens 
as sun, moon, and stars sparks from the south¬ 
ern fire world, to light the earth. From the 


STORIES OF CREATION 


17 


blackness of the abyss they made night, and 
with great care planned out the seasons. As 
soon as the sun began to shine upon the earth 
all the vegetables and larger plants and trees 
began to sprout and bud and put forth fruit and 
the world soon became a great, beautiful garden. 

Shortly after the three grandsons of Bori 
had created the world they walked beside the 
sea and were much pleased with what they had 
done, but they found that it was not yet com¬ 
plete for there were no human beings to enjoy 
their work or to do honor to the gods. Then 
Odin, the greatest of the three gods, saw grow¬ 
ing in the distance two beautiful trees, an ash 
and an elm, and from an ash spar he made man, 
and from an elm spar he made woman, and he 
said, “From these two beings which I have 
created, shall come a race of men to enjoy the 
world. Their homage will be sweet to us, the 
gods.” And Odin gave to these beings life and 
soul, and Vili gave them reason and motion, 
and Ye gave them their senses and the power 
of speech; and Midgard was given them for 
their dwelling place, and thus it was, the Eddas 
say, that the Norse men thought the world was 
made and peopled. 


18 


NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 



THE HEBREW STORY OF CREATION 

But the greatest and most beautiful story of 
creation is the Hebrew story which is the one 
in your own Bible, which you have read many 
times, and which all the Christian world has 
accepted as true. It is given here so that you 
may read it with these other stories of Creation, 
and appreciate more than ever before the won¬ 
derful beauty and dignity of the story, and the 
way it is told: 

In the beginning God created the heaven and 
earth. 







STORIES OF CREATION 


19 


And the earth was without form and void; 
and the darkness was upon the face of the deep. 
And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of 
the waters. 

And God said, Let there be light: and there 
was light. 

And God saw the light, that it was good: and 
God divided the light from darkness. 

And God called the light Day, and the dark¬ 
ness He called Night. And the evening and the 
morning were the first day. 

And God said, Let there be a firmament in 
the midst of the waters, and let it divide the 
waters from the waters. 

And God called the firmament Heaven. And 
the evening and the morning were the second 
day. 

And God said, Let the waters under the 
heaven be gathered together unto one place, and 
let the dry land appear: and it was so. 

And God called the dry land Earth; and the 
gathering together of the waters called he Seas: 
and God saw it was good. 

And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, 
the herb yielding seed and the fruit tree yield¬ 
ing fruit after his kind whose seed is in itself 


20 


NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 


upon the earth, and it was so. And God saw 
that it was good. 

And the evening and the morning were the 
third day. 

And God said, Let there be lights in the firma¬ 
ment of the heaven to divide the day from the 
night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, 
and for days, and years. 

And let them be for lights in the firmament 
of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and 
it was so. 

And God made two great lights; the greater 
light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule 
the night; He made the stars also. 

And God set them in the firmament of the 
heaven to give light upon the earth, and to rule 
over the day and over the night, and to divide 
the light from the darkness: and God saw that 
it was good. 

And the evening and the morning were the 
fourth day. 

And God said, Let the waters bring forth 
abundantly the moving creature that hath life, 
and fowl that may fly above the earth in the 
open firmament of heaven. 

And God created great whales, and every 


STORIES OP CREATION 


21 


living creature that moveth, which the waters 
brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and 
every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw 
that it was good. 

And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, 
and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and 
let fowl multiply in the earth. 

And the evening and the morning were the 
fifth day. 

And God said, Let the earth bring forth the 
living creature after his kind, cattle, and creep¬ 
ing things, and beasts of the earth after his 
kind: and it was so. 

And God made the beast of the earth after 
his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every¬ 
thing that creepeth upon the earth after his 
kind: and God saw that it was good. 

And God said, Let us make man in our image, 
after our likeness: and let them have dominion 
over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the 
air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, 
and over every creeping thing that creepeth 
upon the earth. 

So God created man in his own image, in the 
image of God created he him; male and female 
created he them. 


22 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

And God blessed them, and God said unto 
them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish 
the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion 
over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the 
air, and over every living thing that moveth 
upon the earth. 

And God said, Behold, I have given you every 
herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all 
the earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit 
of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for 
meat. 

And to every beast of the earth, and to every 
fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth 
upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have 
given every green herb for meat: and it was so. 

And God saw every thing that he had made 
and, behold, it was very good. And the even¬ 
ing and the morning were the sixth day. 

Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, 
and all the host of them. 

And on the seventh day God ended his work 
which he had made; and he rested on the seventh 
day from all his work which he had made. 

And God blessed the seventh day, and sancti¬ 
fied it; because that in it he had rested from all 
his work which God created and made. 


STORIES OF CREATION 


23 


But there went up a mist from the earth, and 
watered the whole face of the ground. 

And the Lord God formed man of the dust 
of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils 
the breath of life; the man became a living soul. 

And the Lord God said, it is not good that the 
man should be alone; I will make an helpmeet 
for him. 

And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall 
upon Adam, and he slept; and he took one of his 
ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof. 

And the rib, which the Lord God had taken 
from man, made he a woman, and brought her 
unto the man. 

And Adam said, This is now bone of my 
bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called 
Woman, because she was taken out of Man. 

Therefore, shall a man leave his father and 
his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and 
they shall be one flesh. 


PROMETHEUS 


O NCE upon a time, before there were any 
people upon the earth, a great race of giants 
called the Titans lived among the mountains of 
Greece. Prometheus was one of the greatest 
of these Titans, who was much honored because 
he could foresee events and foretell the future. 

Zeus was the greatest of all the gods and the 
ruler of heaven and earth. His home was on 
Mount Olympus, the highest mountain in 
Greece, and there with him lived all the other 
gods. 

At one time the giants grew angry with the 
all-powerful Zeus and wanted to take his throne 
away from him. But Prometheus was wiser 
than the other giants. He tried to show them 
how powerful Zeus was. He begged them not 
to attempt to battle with the great god because 
he knew they would fail. But they would not 
listen to him and they soon began to carry out 
their foolish plan. 

They piled great rocks higher and higher until 
they reached above the sky. On the top of this 

24 


PROMETHEUS 


25 


mound, hidden by the clouds, they hoped to 
make battle upon Mount Olympus and conquer 
mighty Zeus. 

Prometheus could not stop the giants, but he 
and his brother Epimetheus refused to help 
them. 

Zeus waited until the giants had finished their 
work and were ready for battle. Then he put 
out his scepter and touched the great giant- 
made mountain. Instantly it fell over into the 
sea, carrying all the giants with it. 

Prometheus and his brother were now the 
only Titans left upon the earth, and they were 
very lonely. So one day Zeus gave them per¬ 
mission to make animals out of clay. He 
advised them to give their creatures faculties 
for getting their living, and coverings to protect 
their bodies. Because Prometheus was wiser 
than Epimetheus he was set to oversee his 
brother’s work. 

Epimetheus shaped many animals from clay, 
and gave them gifts of courage, swiftness, 
strength, and cunning. To some he gave feath¬ 
ers and wings; to others, fur and claws; and to 
others, a hard shelly covering. 

While his brother worked upon these animals 


26 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

Prometheus was trying to make a nobler animal 
than any of these. For this purpose he took fine 
earth and kneaded it with w T ater. Finally, after 
many trials, he made his creature in the image 
of the gods and called it man. 

He gave to man an upright stature, so that 
while the other animals must face the earth, man 
gazes at the stars. 

At last man was finished, all except his cover¬ 
ing and his gifts. But alas, Prometheus had 
been so interested in his own work that he had 
forgotten to watch his brother, Epimetheus, wFo 
was always rash and who never looked ahead 
as his brother did. 

So, as might be expected, Prometheus now 
found that Epimetheus had used up all the gifts 
and coverings for the other animals, and that 
nothing was left to give man. 

Greatly troubled, Prometheus went to Zeus 
and begged for help. Zeus pitied him and said, 
“I myself will clothe man,” and this he did, 
and that is the reason that man’s covering is so 
delicate and so beautiful. 

Prometheus gazed upon man with his wonder¬ 
ful covering, and was so pleased with him that 
he created him in great numbers. However, 


PROMETHEUS 


27 



his people were still helpless and stupid for they 
had no gifts. But Prometheus was not dis¬ 
couraged. He knew that in time he should 
succeed in making man the noblest animal of all. 

He knew that, first of all, his people must 
breathe, so Prometheus went to the great Zeus 
again and asked for help, and this time Zeus 
sent him to Aeolus, the god of the winds. Aeolus 
commanded his son North Wind to go with 
Prometheus and when North Wind saw the 
wonderful people of clay, he blew his breath 
upon them, and one by one they began to 
breathe. 










28 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

But they were a dull people, and Prometheus 
was not satisfied. He went to Aeolus again, 
and this time Aeolus sent South Wind and the 
Zephyrs back with him. South Wind brought 
green grass, flowers, and birds. The Zephyrs 
laughed and sang and danced, but the people 
were too stupid to learn from them. They 
wanted only to crawl far back into dark caves 
out of sight. 

Then Athene, herself, the great goddess of 
wisdom, came to aid Prometheus. She gave to 
the people her supreme gift, intelligence, so 
that while man had no other gifts or instincts 
he was able to learn from other animals. Soon 
he learned to conquer and excel them all by 
the use of his mind. 

Athene w T as pleased with her work and said, 
“Man shall also have a soul. I myself will 
breathe a soul into man. This will forever set 
him apart and above all other animals.” This 
she did, and, so the story says, man received in 
one day his mind and his soul. 

But the people were still miserable and 
Prometheus knew that they needed one other , 
gift from the gods, the greatest gift of all, fire, 
and he said, “This also they shall have. Fire 


PROMETHEUS 


29 


will drive away darkness and conquer the cold. 
Fire will draw the people around it and create 
a home. Certainly the people must have fire.” 

But, before he had time to ask Zeus for it, 
something had happened. 

Wise old Zeus had foreseen that Prometheus 
must soon ask for fire for his people. He, too, 
knew that it was the one thing they needed. 
But fire was the most precious possession of the 
gods and Zeus kept it burning around his throne 
day and night. He grudged its use to man and 
said to himself, “Fire, man shall not have.” 
You see, Zeus was already jealous of these people 
that Prometheus had made, and he feared that 
if they had fire they might soon equal and rival 
the gods. 

Therefore, he tried to think of an excuse for 
refusing fire to them, and, since there seemed 
to be no good reason for doing so, he immediately 
decided to pick a quarrel with Prometheus. 

He told him to slay an ox and divide it into 
two equal parts; one part was to be set apart 
for man to use in sacrifice to the gods in grati¬ 
tude for their protection; the other part man 
could use for his own needs. 

Zeus said to Prometheus, “Prepare these 


30 


NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 


parts and disguise them. When all is ready I 
will choose. The portion I select shall always 
be set aside as an offering to the gods, and man 
must be content with the other portion.” 

Now Zeus felt sure that Prometheus in mak¬ 
ing the division would try to favor his people, 
and you will see that he was right. For when 
Prometheus divided the ox he wrapped all the 
good and edible portions in the bloody skin, but 
all the bones and waste parts he cunningly con¬ 
cealed under the clean w r hite fat of the animal, 
hoping that Zeus would choose the better look¬ 
ing portion. 

Zeus, of course, saw through the trick, for he 
was all-seeing, but he pretended he did not know 
which portion was the better, and he chose the 
useless portion for the gods. 

When he lifted up the fat and uncovered the 
bones, he pretended to be very angry and said, 
“Is this my portion, ungrateful Prometheus? 
You should teach your people to worship the 
gods and to give them always the best. I have 
already given you too much for them. Let them 
now help themselves. Ask nothing more for 
them from the gods.” 

Then Prometheus was very miserable, for he 


PROMETHEUS 


31 


loved his people more than his own life. At last 
he said, “I dare not ask Zeus for the fire, but 
nevertheless they shall have it. Until now my 
people have known only the evils of fire. In 
fear they have watched it descending from 
Mount Olympus to destroy the enemies of Zeus. 
In terror they have seen it issuing from inside 
the earth, with great rumblings, so that even the 
mountains trembled as the flames burst forth. 
Now they shall know the blessings of fire. I 
will give them fire even though I pay for it with 
my life.” 

He went straightway to the throne of Zeus 
and filled a hollow tube from the precious 
flames and carried it to his people. 

Then the people, with the help of fire, began 
to work for themselves. They dug rich ores 
from the mountains, and forged tools and made 
many useful implements. They began to cook 
their food. As they grew wiser, they learned 
how to plow and to reap, to harvest their crops, 
and to store their food for the winter. They 
began to build houses and sail ships on the 
ocean, and exchange their products. 

When Zeus saw all these things he was indeed 
very angry with Prometheus. He dared not put 


32 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

him to death because Prometheus knew the 
future. He alone knew many things that Zeus 
wanted to find out. Therefore, instead of death, 
he gave him a terrible punishment. 

He had Prometheus chained to a rock on top 
of a high mountain called Mount Caucasus, and 
sent a great vulture every day to feed upon his 
liver, which was consumed by day, and by night 
grew again. Zeus said he must stay in this 
torment until he returned the fire to heaven. 

So Prometheus stayed on the bleak mountain 
top and suffered for many burning summers and 
long, cold winters. Sometimes he grew so weary 
and faint-hearted that he was tempted to free 
himself and give back the fire to Zeus. 

But when he looked down upon his people 
and saw how the fire was helping them, and how 
happy and contented they were, he knew that 
he could never do it. Always he grew strong 
and patient again to wait for the release which 
he knew would finally come to him. 

After many, many years a Greek hero, who 
was sailing over the mountains in a golden cup, 
saw Prometheus. This was Hercules. He shot 
the vulture with a golden arrow, unbound the 
chains and set the great-hearted giant free. 


HOW THE SPARK OF FIRE WAS 
SAVED 

T ONGr ago, when fire was first brought to the 
earth it was given to the care of two bel¬ 
dams who lived at the end of the world. 

The Cahroc Indians knew where it was hidden. 
They needed fire, and were always planning 
ways to get it. At last they went for help to 
the wise coyote. “That is simple enough/’ said 
he, “I will show you a way to get it. Fire is a 
great blessing and should be free to all people/’ 
The coyote knew every inch of the road to 
the beldams’ hut. Along the path leading to 
it, he stationed beasts, the strongest and best 
runners nearer the hut, and the weaker ones 
farther off. Nearest to the hut he placed one 
of the sinewy Cahroc men. 

Then he boldly walked up to the door and 
knocked. The beldams, not fearing the coyote 
in the least, invited him in. They were often 
lonely, living so near the end of the world. 

When the coyote had rested before the fire 
for some time, he said, “The Cahroc nation needs 

33 


34 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

fire. Could you not give them a small spark? 
You would never miss it. Here it is of no use.” 

The beldams answered, “We do not love it, 
but we dare not give it away. We must guard 
it while we live.” 

The coyote had expected them to say this. 
He sprang to the window, and instantly outside 
were heard such sounds that the beldams rushed 
out to see what the frightful noise could be. 

Each animal in the line was sounding the 
watchword of fire in his own way. The wild 
horse neighed, the mountain lion roared, the 
gray wolf howled, the serpent hissed, the buffalo 
bellowed, and every small animal did its part 
equally well. Indeed, it is no wonder that the 
beldams were frightened nearly to death. 

The Cahroc man went to them at once and 
told them not to fear for themselves. While 
he was telling them this, the coyote seized a 
half-burned brand and was off in an instant. 

The beldams sprang after him and followed 
him closely over hill and valley. Faster than 
the wind they flew. They were stronger than 
he, and though he put all his wildwood nerve 
to the strain, they steadily gained. Soon the 
race must end! But puma, the monstrous cat, 



“Puma, the monstrous cat, was watching ” 






























36 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

was watching, and leaped up just in time to save 
the brand. Each animal was in his place, and 
the fire passed on. 

It came at last safely to the Cahroc nation 
and was afterward free to all people under the 
sun. 

There were only two mishaps in all that race. 
As the squirrel turned a corner of stumps and 
boulders, his beautiful tail caught fire. A brown 
streak was burned up over his back to his 
shoulders, and the curl has remained in his tail 
to this day. 

The frog had a harder fate. He was the last 
one in the line of beasts. When the brand 
reached him, it was smaller than the smallest 
coal on the hearth. 

He seized it carefully and jumped forward as 
fast as he could, but the hand of the foremost 
beldam caught him and held him fast. How his 
heart beat! His eyeballs bulged almost out of 
his head with fright, and ever since that day he 
has kept that scared look. 

He did not lose his courage, however. He 
swallowed the coal and sprang into the water. 
He was glad to escape, but sad to tell, the beldam 
still had in her hand his special pride and care, 


HOW THE SPARK OF FIRE WAS SAVED 37 

his tail. Henceforth, only the tadpoles could 
wear tails. The breathless, weary old frog swam 
out of the beldam’s reach to a log. He sat down 
upon it to rest and think what should be done 
next. 

“I did my duty even if I lost my beauty,” he 
thought, as he blinked his great round eyes. 
“That is enough for a frog. But this spark 
must be saved. Now I must think about that 
and nothing else.” 

Soon an idea came to him, and after much 
painful choking, he blew the spark from his 
mouth, and forced it well under the bark of the 
log where it was safe. 

In this way the gift of fire came to all men, 
for even in the wettest weather, if you rub two 
sticks together fire is sure to come. 

Because they know how it was that the frog 
hurt his throat that day, the Cahroc Indians 
like to listen to his hoarse voice when they hear 
him singing to his children in the spring. 


KING ALCINOUS AND THE 
STORM GIANTS 


i^N a high plain covered with flowers once 
lived good King Alcinous and his gentle 
people, the Phaeacians. They were marvelous 
sailors and went about in silver ships without 
rudders or sails, and these wonderful ships went 
slowly or very fast, just as the sailors wished. 
For many years the Phaeacians were peaceful 
and happy, for though they were as brave as 
they were gentle, they hated war. 

Far below the Phaeacians, in a valley, lived 
the Storm Giants, a people larger, darker, fiercer 
than themselves. These dark people cared for 
nothing so much as war and conquest. Their 
gray battleships, with black hulls and prows, 
looked like huge birds as they flew before the 
wind. 

When the dark people saw King Alcinous’ 
silver ships with the golden prows, they wanted 
them for their own. So they armed themselves 
and made ready for a great battle. They did 

38 


KING ALCINOUS AND THE STORM GIANTS 39 



“They "beheld the silver ships of the Phaeacians sailing 
forward to meet them” 


not doubt that they could conquer the Phaea¬ 
cians, but to be sure of victory, they borrowed 
the thunderbolts and the lightning of Zeus. 

The day came and all was ready for the Storm 
Giants to advance. They hurled a thunderbolt 
toward the Phaeacians to warn them to defend 
themselves. Then, in amazement, they beheld 
the silver ships of the Phaeacians sailing for¬ 
ward to meet them, and it was not long before 










40 


NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 


they saw that King Alcinous alone was more 
powerful than their whole army. 

He was dressed in armour so bright that it 
dazzled their eyes to look at it. He was cov¬ 
ered with millions of golden arrows tipped with 
diamonds, and he showed the frightened people 
how he could shoot these arrows in all direc¬ 
tions at the same time. 

Then the Storm Giants trembled with fear, 
and prayed aloud for mercy. At once King 
Alcinous smiled upon them and sent Iris over 
her rainbow bridge to tell them that all was 
well. Then slowly he and all his people turned 
their ships and sailed away toward the west. 
On and on they went until they came to the 
palace of the King upon the shore of a 
great silver sea. The golden gates before the 
palace opened and King Alcinous and all his 
men entered the fair, peaceful realm where 
they dwelt. 

The King’s palace was made of gold and sil¬ 
ver and precious stones. Its towers were of 
rose color and shone with a wondrous light. 
The steps were of pure gold. On either side 
of the steps were statues of young boys hold¬ 
ing burning torches, and huge dogs guarded 


KING ALCINOUS AND THE STORM GIANTS 41 

the great arched entrance, which led to the 
inner throne. 

In the gardens, at the right of the palace, 
were singing birds and fountains and gayly 
colored flowers which bloomed the year around, 
and little children playing everywhere. 

Under the trees, to the left, young maidens 
were moving gracefully about their tasks. Some 
were winding off the purple skeins of wool. 
Some were weaving wonderful tapestry and cur¬ 
tains and others were making rich embroidery 
with colors of every hue. Their work was 
worthy of Athene, for the Phaeacian women as 
far excelled other women in the household arts 
as the Phaeacian men excelled all other men 
as mariners. 

The Storm Giants had followed King Alcinous 
to his gates. Now, dazed with all they had 
seen, they turned their ships and sailed back 
to the Storm country, conquered without a 
battle. 

And often to this day, the great shining King 
sits in the gardens of his palace in the west, 
when his work is done. He loves to see his 
people glide about upon the silver sea, in their 
ships without rudders or sails. 


42 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

The fierce dark people still go to war, but 
they do not fear King Alcinous. They know, 
that though he is great and powerful, he loves 
peace, and they carry on their wars as far as 
possible from his kingdom. 

For this reason King Alcinous seldom sees 
the dark people fighting. 

Yet sometimes after a brave battle, when they 
think he is far away he comes out of his palace 
and smiles his glorious bright smile upon them, 
and always the dark people glow with pleasure 
and smile back at him. 

You can usually tell when this happens, for 
the rainbow bridge of Iris appears, over which 
she carries back and forth their messages of 
good will. 


THE SWAN MAIDENS 


T HERE is an old Greek Myth which tells 
us that the Swan Maidens were the beauti¬ 
ful daughters of Phoebus, the King of the 
Golden Sword. 

After hearing this, one might expect to find 
many old Greek stories about them. There are 
plenty of stories about Zeus, Apollo, Athene, 
and Hermes, as you know, and hosts of them 
about heroes and giants, but none about the Swan 
Maidens, who were not a whit less interesting. 

However, it is not yet too late to write a 
story or a poem about them for they are just 
as wonderful today as when, long, long ago 
they gathered round the throne of mighty 
Zeus on Mount Olympus. 

The most precious possession of the Swan 
Maidens has always been the gift of magic. 
By means of it, in the twinkling of an eye, 
they can change their form or their dresses to 
suit their fancies. 

One of their favorite games is to make them¬ 
selves into snow-white sheep, and wander with 

43 


44 


NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 


the moon goddess, Artemis, across her great 
blue meadows. Sometimes they skip and run 
before her, sometimes they rudely crowd each 
other across her path. Again, the whole flock 
meekly follows where she leads. They are so 
often seen with the gentle shepherdess that 
in some countries they are known as Artemis’ 
sheep. 

Their games never last long, and when Arte¬ 
mis happens to take her path by the shining 
meadow lake the fickle Swan Maidens often 
desert her and suddenly disappear. But in a 
moment many graceful swans appear on the 
lake, floating calmly about as if they had never 
done anything else in all their lives. 

But you must not think that the Swan Maid¬ 
ens do nothing but play, for that is far from 
the truth. 

It is one of their pleasant duties to fill the 
sky daily with beautiful pictures, which are 
constantly changing. They also help their 
father, the King of the Golden Sword, in his 
great work. As his kingdom, at one time or 
another, includes all the earth and sky, there 
is much work to be done. Every morning, the 
great eastern gates open wide and the King 


THE SWAN MAIDENS 


45 


begins his journey to his throne palace in the 
west. His work is to scatter heat and light 
among his people. 

One can imagine the King saying to the Swan 
Maidens, “ Daughters, the grass on the earth 
is brown, and the buds on the trees are not 
coming out properly. Something must be done 
about it. There is nothing more beautiful in 
our kingdom than the green grass and the trees. 
They need your care. There is not a moment 
to lose.” 

Instantly the Swan Maidens obey. They 
change their garments and start upon their 
journey. Often all who go cannot work upon 
the grass and buds. Then some of them run 
down to feed the roots and worms, and work 
underground. When their tasks are finished 
they always hurry back to their father, ready 
for new work or play. 

Fortunately for them their gift of magic 
enables them to make themselves invisible. This 
is very necessary, for, strange as it may seem, 
the Swan Maidens have an enemy, a clever 
creature called a mortal, who is always set¬ 
ting traps for them on the earth. As he is 
something of a wizard, he understands most of 


46 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

their magic, and can make them change their 
forms at will. 

When he has caught them he enslaves them, 
and they must work long weary hours at his 
command. As they do this unnatural work their 
never-ceasing cries and moans are music to his 
ears. But sooner or later, the opportunity comes 
to the Swan Maidens to make themselves invisi¬ 
ble. Then they escape their cruel master and 
slip away to their home. 

In spite of its dangers, the Swan Maidens 
love the earth and spend much of their time 
upon it. When it is cold and they see the 
flowers shivering, they wrap themselves in white 
feather-like blankets and come softly down. 
They lay a thick cover over the earth, and leave 
no small seed unprotected. 

There are many other interesting things about 
the Swan Maidens. Perhaps, some one who is 
now a child—one about as old as you are— 
may sometime be able to write the wonderful 
story about the Swan Maidens which the old 
Greek people neglected to write. 

Of course to write such a wonderful story 
or a beautiful poem about them, one would have 
to know a very great deal about the Swan 


THE SWAN MAIDENS 


47 



“If you lie very still the Swan Maidens will work their 
magic before your very eyes” 


Maidens. He really should begin to watch 
them and play their games while he is very 
little. 

If I were a child—if I were you—I tell you 
what I would do. I would leave the town 
behind me some summer afternoon, and go to 
a hillside where the balsam pine trees grow. 

I would throw myself flat upon my back, 
upon the ground, and look up through the 
pine needles at the sky. If you should do 
this it will not be long, I promise you, before 









48 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

the King of the Golden Sword will appear 
before you, and his daughters, the Swan Maid¬ 
ens, will not be far away. They will soon 
come gayly trooping into sight. 

Then if you are the right kind of a child, 
and lie very still, the Swan Maidens will work 
their magic before your very eyes. They can 
change themselves into anything they like, you 
know, from a small fluttering bird to a great 
aeroplane, or a phantom ship which fades away 
into nothing, while you are looking at it. 

And then, if you are fortunate, it is just 
possible that the Swan Maidens may come 
down and lay their spell upon you and carry 
you away with them to the great blue meadow, 
where you, too, may be anything you like for 
a whole afternoon. 

And if you happen to be the particular child 
who is sometime to write their story, or the 
poem, which would be even better I think, 
the Swan Maidens will surely unveil their most 
deeply hidden wonders and reveal to you their 
untold magical secrets and they might even 
tell you how the poem ought to begin. 

However that may be, at about the time the 
sun sets they are almost sure to carry you back 


THE SWAN MAIDENS 


49 


to the hillside and take away the magic spell. 

Then you will sit up and rub your eyes and 
look around and say, “Can it really be as late 
at that? The sun seems to be going down. I 
must have been dreaming. But it was fun 
anyway. I shall have to run very fast if I 
am to get home in time for some of those good 
cookies that Mother made for supper/’ 




HERMES 


A EOLUS was the father of all the winds, 
great and small, and long ago they lived 
happily together in a deep, dark cavern near 
the sea. 

On holidays, North Wind, South Wind, East 
Wind, and West Wind and their faithful sis¬ 
ters came home and told of their travels. The 
whirlwinds practiced their most wonderful feats, 
and the zephyrs sang their sweetest songs. 
These holidays, however, did not come often 
for there were no idle children in the family 
of Aeolus. 

They swept and dusted the whole world and 
carried water over all the earth. They helped 
push the great ships across the ocean. The 
smaller winds scattered the seeds and sprinkled 
the flowers, and did many other things which 
you may find out for yourselves. Indeed, they 
were so busy that Aeolus was often left alone 
in his dark home for several days at a time. 

He was glad when one summer morning, at 
peep of day, a baby was born in the cave. 

50 


HERMES 


51 


He was a lovable, frolicsome baby, and the 
strangest thing about him was that he had two 
pairs of tiny, magic wings. One pair was on 
his little cap, which made him invisible when 
he put it on, and the other pair just fitted his 
small ankles. 

The baby’s name was Hermes, but a better 
name for him was “Little Mischief,” because he 
was so little and so full of tricks. 

Zeus was Hermes’ father and his mother was 
the beautiful Queen Maia. She was often called 
“Star of Spring,” because people thought that 
wherever she stepped flowers sprang from under 
the snow. 

Aeolus loved Hermes dearly and taught him 
many secrets which only the winds know, and 
Hermes was a wise baby and understood all 
that Aeolus told him. 

When he was only two days old he could 
run and whistle as well as North Wind. He 
could leap the spaces between star and star, 
and he kept all the gods astonished and amused 
with his wonderful tricks. 

One day while he was very young he climbed 
out of his cradle and ran down to the seashore. 
There he found an old tortoise shell. He picked 


52 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

it up and made a row of holes along each edge 
of the shell. Through these holes he wove some 
reeds which he found upon the seashore. Then 
he blew softly upon the reeds. The birds heard 
such wonderful music that they stopped to 
listen. The leaves on the trees began to dance, 
and nodded to the flowers to keep still. 

The w r aves on the shore caught the tune, and 
they have been singing it ever since. Hermes 
had invented the lyre and brought a new kind 
of music into the world. 

He soon tired of his new plaything and went 
back to his cradle in the cave. As he lay 
there and looked out through the opening of 
the cave he could see a beautiful blue meadow 
with many white cows grazing upon it. Hermes 
knew that the cows belonged to his brother, 
King Apollo. 

“What fun!” thought he, “I will go and 
make the cows gallop.” 

Off he ran after them, chasing them back and 
forth across the meadow until even he was 
out of breath, and the poor cows were dripping 
with sweat and ready to drop. “Now I must 
hide them from Apollo,” he thought, and he 
laughed as he gathered the herd together and 


HERMES 


53 


drove them all backward into a great cave. 
Then by magic he rolled a huge ball from 
the dark blue meadow and placed it before 
the opening of the cave to hide it from sight. 

King Apollo soon missed the cows and 
searched all the meadow for them. He traced 
them to the cave, but when he got close to it 
he found that all the hoof-prints led away from 
the opening, not into it. He was much puzzled, 
until an old man near-by told him that he had 
seen a baby with wings at 



“He ran after them, chasing them hack and forth across 
the meadow” 






54 


NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 


Apollo knew at once that the baby was his mis¬ 
chievous little brother, Hermes. 

He went straight to the cave of Aeolus. There 
was Hermes in his cradle playing with the 
shell, just like any other baby. Apollo was 
angry and commanded him to stop laughing and 
crowing and tell him where the white cows 
were. 

Hermes did not answer, but he picked up the 
shell and breathed softly upon it. Apollo for¬ 
got his anger and everything but the wonderful 
music. He took Hermes in his arms and kissed 
him and begged him to teach him his secret. 

Hermes was glad to be so easily forgiven. 
He gave Apollo the lyre and taught him many 
ways to play upon it. Apollo was soon able 
to make even sweeter music than Hermes had 
made, and he afterward became the god of 
music. 

He was so thankful to Hermes for his gift 
that he gave him a wonderful rod called the 
caduceus. 

With this magic rod Hermes could bring 
health, sweet sleep, and pleasant dreams to 
tired and weary mortals; and whatever he 
touched with the rod became gentle and kind. 


HERMES 


55 


One time he saw two hissing serpents about 
to spring at each other in fury. He touched 
them with his rod and instantly they became 
quiet and twined themselves around the rod, 
and never again left it. 

Apollo also gave Hermes charge over all the 
cows in the blue meadow. Hermes loved them 
and often took them with him on his journeys 
of adventure. He was a great wanderer, and 
so it happens that in nearly all the countries 
of the world Hermes and his snow-white cows 
have been seen. 



BALDER 


nn HE people in the North once believed that 
high above the clouds was the beautiful 
plain of Asgard. In it stood Valhalla, the vast 
feasthall of Odin, and all around it were the 
splendid, golden and silver palaces of the other 
gods. And in the middle of the plain of Asgard, 
and apart from the other dwellings, was a pure 
white palace. Only that which was fair and 
good ever dared to enter this palace for it was 
the home of Balder, god of sunlight and gladness. 
Because of his great beauty and wisdom, he was 
called “Balder the beautiful” and “Balder the 
good.” 

Everything loved him. Joy filled the world 
when he smiled. The dull rocks and the gray 
old mountains softened with lichens and ferns 
the face which they turned to Balder. The birds 
waked at dawn to praise him. For him the bare 
trees burst into bloom, and there was nothing on 
earth too small or too sad to welcome him. 

But one night Balder dreamed that he must 
soon leave Asgard and all the things which he 

56 


BALDER 


57 



so dearly loved. The next night J j 
he dreamed that he was living in 
the black, gloomy, underground 
world. The third night, when the same terrible 
dream came to him, he was greatly troubled and 
in the morning he told Odin, his father, and 
Frigga, his mother, about it. 

Then Odin, in great alarm, called together his 
wisest gods and heroes. But they only shook 
their heads and could do nothing to help him. 
But Frigga cried, “It shall not be. I, his 
mother, will save him. I shall ask all things on 
earth to swear an oath not to harm Balder.” 


So Frigga sent her messengers into all parts 
of the world and everything—fire, water, iron 
and all metals, stones, trees, diseases, beasts, 









58 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

birds, poisons, and all creeping things—gladly 
promised what she asked. They wondered at 
the question for they thought, “Who could wish 
to hurt the gentle Balder V’ 

But Odin, Balder’s father, was not satisfied 
with what Frigga had done, for he knew all 
things and his heart was very heavy. He feared 
that nothing could save Balder from death. 

All the other gods, however, trusted in the 
great Frigga, and they rejoiced when they heard 
of the oath which all things had given her. 

In their joy they found a new way to do 
Balder honor. He stood in their midst while the 
most skillful gods and heroes hurled their 
arrows at him. At first they threw only small 
twigs and stones. Everything, however, soon 
proved itself true to its promise. Then the 
heroes lost all fear of harming him, and amused 
themselves by throwing their huge swords, bat¬ 
tle axes, and other war-like weapons. But 
always Balder stood unharmed and smiling 
among them. For many days they gathered on 
the plains for this strange sport, and all things 
proved their love for Balder. 

Loki, alone, was unhappy. Loki was the 
wicked one in Asgard. He was always doing 


BALDER 


59 


clever, evil things against the gods. His 
schemes were usually unkind and most of the 
misery in Asgard was caused by Loki’s cruel 
tricks. 

Now, when Loki saw that Balder was 
unharmed he was vexed that nothing had been 
able to hurt him. He took the form of an old 
woman and went to Frigga’s palace and asked 
her if she knew what the gods were doing. She 
answered that they were throwing darts and 
stones at Balder without being able to hurt him. 
“Neither stones nor arrows, nor anything else 
can hurt Balder,” said she, “For I have an oath 
from all of them.” 

“What,” said the old woman, “Have all things 
sworn to spare Balder?” “All,” replied Frigga, 
“except one little shrub growing upon the east¬ 
ern side of Valhalla, called the mistletoe. I 
thought that one too young and feeble to take 
the oath.” 

As soon as Loki heard this he took his own 
form again and soon found the mistletoe and 
cut it off. Then he went back to the place where 
the gods were gathered playing the game. 

Soon Loki saw blind Hoder standing apart 
from the others—the only one in Asgard who 


60 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

could not join in the game. He was Balder’s 
brother and loved him dearly. This was the 
chance the wicked Loki was looking for. He 
went straight to Hoder and said, “Hoder, Why 
dost thou not do Balder honor? Why dost 
thou not, too, throw something at him?” 
‘ 4 Because I am blind,” Hoder answered. “And 
besides, I have nothing to throw.” “Here is 
my arrow,” said Loki, “take it and do thy best. 
I will guide thy arrow to the place where he 
stands.” 

Alas, the cruel Loki had made the arrow of 
mistletoe. He knew that this was the only way 
in which Balder could be harmed. He longed 
to see the surprise of the heroes when Balder 
should at last be wounded. 

Hoder took the mistletoe and, guided by 
Loki’s hand, away flew the arrow. Balder the 
beautiful, pierced through and through, fell life¬ 
less to the ground. 

Then all Asgard was dark with sorrow. 
Strong heroes wept and would not be comforted. 
The earth grew cold and white and still. The 
water would not flow and the trees refused to 
grow. The birds became silent and no flowers 
breathed their fragrance into the air. And Odin 


BALDER 


61 


said, “This is the doom that was foretold at his 
birth.’’ And he bade the sorrowing gods build 
a funeral pyre worthy of Balder. 

Then Hoder, pale with grief, begged that he 
might die and go himself to Hela’s regions to 
take Balder’s place. But his mother, Frigga, 
said that there was but one messenger, Hermod, 
the swiftest of the gods, who could go. There¬ 
fore she sent Hermod on Odin’s horse to the 
spirit world to beg Queen Hela to release 
Balder. 

And after three days Hermod returned say¬ 
ing, “Rejoice, for Hela says if everything living 
and lifeless weep for Balder he may return to 
us.” And there was great happiness in Asgard 
that day. “Surely,” they thought, “everything 
in the world will weep for Balder.” They had 
forgotten the cruel Loki. 

Again Frigga sent messengers into all parts 
of the world, this time to ask for tears for 
Balder. And all went well until, at length the 
messenger went beyond the edge of Asgard into 
a forest filled with iron trees. There, before 
a dark cavern, sat a shriveled hag, toothless and 
old, who gibed at them and said, “Why come 
you here to my iron forest? Do you scorn 


62 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

heaven and wish a change?” And they 
answered, “We come, not for gibes, but for 
tears.” They told her how Hela held Balder 
prisoner until all things on earth should weep 
for him. They begged her not to grudge her 
tears. But with a loud laugh the hag replied, 
“I weep him not. Let Hela keep him safe.” 
With a horrid grin, she fled, mocking, into the 
cavern’s depth. Then they knew the old woman 
was no other than the wicked Loki. 

But because there was one pair of dry eyes 
on the earth Balder could not return to Asgard. 

Then all the gods hastened to obey Odin’s 
command. For twelve days and nights they 
worked as only love can make men work. They 
did not pause for food nor rest. They built a 
great funeral pyre, and nothing was too small 
or too weak to help in the work of love. 

They found Balder’s ship upon the seashore 
and brought great logs from the forest and 
bound them upon the deck. Upon these they 
placed his beautiful w T hite horse, his dogs, his 
shining armor, and many things which he loved 
upon earth. And by his side they placed his 
dear wife, Nanna, who had died of grief. When 
all was finished, they raised the sails, set the 


BALDER 


63 


ship on fire and pushed it out upon the sea. 
They stood upon the seashore and wept all night 
until, at sunrise, the sails fell into the dark 
water. They watched the flames die down, and 
the waves wash over the sinking ship. 

* But even as the gods turned, sorrowing, from 
the shore, they felt deep in their hearts that a 
time would come when Balder would return, 
and that then upon the earth there would be no 
more tears or darkness or cold, but only sun¬ 
light and love in all the world. 


PERSEPHONE 


D EMETER had the care of all the plants, 
fruits, and grains in the world. She taught 
the people how to plow the fields and plant the 
seeds. She helped them gather in their harvests. 
They loved the kind Earth-mother and gladly 
obeyed her. They also loved her daughter, the 
beautiful Persephone. 

Persephone wandered all day in the meadows 
among the flowers. Wherever she went the 
birds, singing merrily, flocked after her. 

The people said, “Where Persephone is, there 
is the warm sunshine. Flowers bloom when 
she smiles. Listen to her voice: it is like a bird’s 
song.” 

Demeter wished always to have her child near 
her. But one day Persephone went alone into 
a meadow near the sea. She made a wreath 
of delicate blossoms for her hair, and gathered 
all the flowers that her apron could hold. 

Far away across the meadow she saw a white 
flower gleaming. She ran to it and found that 
^ it was a narcissus, but far more beautiful than 

64 



“Persephone gathered all the flowers that her apron could hold” 




















66 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

any she had ever seen. On a single stem were a 
hundred blossoms. She tried to pick it, but the 
stem would not break. With all her strength 
she grasped it, and slowly it came up by the roots. 

It left a great opening in the earth which 
grew larger and larger. Soon Persephone heard 
a rumbling like thunder under her feet. Then 
she saw four black horses coming toward her 
from the opening. Behind them was a chariot 
made of gold and precious stones. In it sat a 
dark, stern man. It was Hades. 

He had come up from his land of darkness, 
and was shading his eyes with his hands. In the 
sunny meadow Hades saw Persephone standing, 
beautiful with flowers. He reached out, and 
caught her in his arms, and placed her in the 
chariot beside him. 

The flowers fell from her apron. “Oh, my 
lovely flowers!” she cried, “I have lost them 
all.” Then she saw the stern face of Hades. 
Frightened, she stretched out her hands to kind 
Apollo who was driving his chariot overhead. 
She called to her mother, Demeter, for help. 
No one answered her. 

Hades drove straight toward his dark under¬ 
ground home. The horses seemed to fly. As 


PERSEPHONE 


67 


they left the light, Hades tried to comfort 
Persephone. He told her of the wonders of his 
kingdom, of all the gold and silver and precious 
stones which he possessed. In the dim light, 
as they went along, Persephone saw gems glit¬ 
tering on every side, but she did not care for 
them, and she wept bitterly. 

“I have been very lonely in my vast king¬ 
dom,” said Hades. “I am bringing you to my 
palace, where you shall be my queen. You shall 
share all my riches with me.” But Persephone 
did not want to be a queen. She longed only 
for her mother and the bright sunshine and the 
sweet-smelling meadows. 

Soon they came to the palace of Hades. It 
seemed very dark and dismal to Persephone, 
and very cold, too. A feast was ready for her, 
but she would not eat. She knew that any one 
who ate in Hades’ home could never again 
return to earth. She was very unhappy, though 
Hades tried in many ways to please her. 

Everything on the earth was unhappy, too. 
One by one the flowers hung their heads and 
said, “We cannot bloom, for Persephone has 
gone.” The trees dropped their leaves and 
moaned, “Persephone has gone, gone.” The 


68 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

birds flew away, calling, “We cannot sing, for 
Persephone has gone.” 

Demeter was more miserable than any one 
else. She had heard Persephone call her, and 
had gone swiftly home to find her. She searched 
all the earth for her child. She asked every one 
she met on her way these questions, “Have you 
seen Persephone? Where is Persephone?” 

The only answer she ever received was, 
“Gone, gone. Persephone is gone!” 

Soon Demeter became a wrinkled old woman. 
No one would have known that she was the kind 
mother who had always smiled on the people. 
She sat mourning day and night, her great tears 
falling steadily upon the cold ground. Nothing 
grew upon the earth and all became dreary and 
barren. 

It was useless for the people to plow the soil. 
It was useless to plant the seeds. Nothing could 
grow without the help of Demeter, and all the 
people were idle and sad. 

Demeter wandered into many lands, and when 
she found no one on earth who could tell her 
about Persephone, she looked up toward the 
sky. There she saw Apollo in his bright chariot. 
He was not driving as high in the sky as he was 


PERSEPHONE 


69 


wont to do. He had been hidden by dark mists 
so that none had seen him for many days. 

Demeter knew that he must know about 
Persephone, for he could see all things on earth 
and in the sky. 

“0 great Apollo,” she cried, “pity me, and 
tell me where my child is hidden.” 

Then Apollo told Demeter that Hades had 
carried Persephone away and that she was with 
him in his underground home. 

Demeter hastened to great father Zeus, who 
could do all things. She asked him to send to 
Hades for her daughter. Zeus called Hermes. 
He bade him go as swiftly as the wind to the 
home of Hades. 

Hermes gladly obeyed and he whispered the 
joyful news to all he met on his way. “I am 
going for Persephone. I am going for Per¬ 
sephone. Be ready to welcome her back!” 

He soon arrived in the gloomy kingdom under 
the earth. He gave Hades the message from 
Zeus. He told about the barren earth and of 
how Demeter was mourning for her child. He 
said she would not let anything grow until 
Persephone came back. “The people will starve 
if she does not soon return,” he said. 


70 


NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 


Then Persephone wept bitterly, for that very 
day she had eaten a pomegranate and swallowed 
six of its seeds, and she remembered that who¬ 
ever ate in Hades’ home could never return to 
earth again. 

But Hades took pity upon her and said, “Go, 
Persephone, back to the sunshine. But the law 
must be obeyed and you shall come back every 
year to stay with me one month for each seed 
that you have eaten. That is all I ask.” 

Joy gave her wings, and as swiftly as Hermes 
himself, Persephone flew up into the sunshine. 

Apollo saw her and rose higher and higher 
into the sky. A gentle breeze came rustling 
from the southeast, and whispered the joyful 
news to everything he met. 

Suddenly the flowers sprang up; the birds 
flocked together and sang; the trees put on 
bright green leaves. Everything, great and 
small, began to say in its own language, “Be 
happy, for Persephone has come! Persephone 
has come!” 

Demeter was so benumbed with sorrow that 
she did not at once heed these voices. But soon 
she saw the great changes all about her and was 
puzzled. “Can the earth be ungrateful? Does 


PERSEPHONE 


71 


it so soon forget my sweet Persephone V’ she 
cried. 

It was not long, however, before her own face 
grew radiant. She became once more the kind 
Earth-mother, for she held again her beloved 
child in her arms. 

When Demeter found that Persephone could 
stay with her only half the year, she brought 
out the choicest treasures from the storehouse, 
and while Persephone stayed, the world was 
filled with beauty and joy. 

When she had gone, Demeter carefully cov¬ 
ered the rivers and lakes, and spread a soft 
white blanket over the sleeping earth. 

Then she, too, fell asleep and dreamed 
pleasant dreams, and did not awake until she 
felt Persephone’s warm kiss on her forehead. 


IRIS’ BRIDGE 


I N" the sky where the amber tints are seen on 
the clouds, Iris was born. She loved her 
home and all the beautiful things around her. 

Perhaps she sailed in the moon’s silver-horned 
boat and found out why the stars kept twink¬ 
ling. Perhaps she feasted on sunshine and mist, 
and slept on the fleecy white clouds. Probably 
she did all the delightful things one could do 
where there is so much room for play. 

But Iris spent only a part of her time in this 
beautiful home. She often slipped down to the 
earth, because, more than anything in her sky 
home, she loved her grandfather, the stern old 
Ocean. 

When he was merry, and drove his white 
horses over the water, she was happy. When 
he was troubled, and his face grew dark and sad, 
she flew down to comfort him. When he was 
angry, she quietly slipped her hand into his, 
and at once he smiled and became gentle again. 

He longed always to keep her with him, but 
the Sun said: “No, Iris belongs to both ocean 

72 


IRIS’ BRIDGE 


73 



and sky. She shall be the messenger between 
heaven and earth.” 

So he placed shining wings upon her shoulders 
and made a bridge for her. One end of the 
bridge he rested in the sky, but the other end 
Iris fastened to the earth with a pot of gold. 

Then the sun said: “Iris’ path shall be made 
lovely for her feet.” And thus the bridge was 
fashioned: The earth gave the tints of her 


74 


NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 


fairest flowers, the sea brought great ribbons 
of silvery mist, the wind was the shuttle, the 
sky was the loom and the Sun himself was the 
weaver. Therefore, it is no wonder that the 
most beautiful thing in all the world is Iris’ 
bridge, the rainbow. 





THE BLUEBIRD 

A MODERN MYTH 

W HEN Mother Nature with planting was 
through 

There was left of Spring’s own color, blue, 
Enough to fashion a flower, whose hue 
Should be richer than all, and as fair. 

But she tossed the bright color high up in the 
air, 

Saying, “So many blue flowers grow every¬ 
where, 

Let this bit of sky soar and sing.” 

From this azure, afloat, a Bluebird took wing— 
Our dearly-loved herald of spring. 

75 


HOW THE ROBIN’S BREAST 
BECAME RED 

T ONG ago in the far North, where it is very 
^ cold, there was only one fire. A hunter and 
his little son took care of this fire and kept it 
burning day and night. They knew that if the 
fire went out the people would freeze and the 
white bear would have the Northland all to 
himself. 

One day the hunter became ill and his son 
had all the work to do. For many days and 
nights he bravely took care of his father and 
kept the fire burning. 

The great white bear was always hiding near, 
watching the fire. He longed to put it out, but 
he did not dare, for he feared the hunter’s 
arrows. When he saw how tired and sleepy the 
little boy was, he came closer to the fire and 
laughed wickedly to himself. 

One night the poor boy grew so tired that he 
could keep awake no longer and fell fast asleep. 
Then the white bear ran as fast as he could and 

76 


HOW THE ROBIN’S BREAST BECAME RED 77 



"When he saw how tired and sleepy the little boy was, 
he came closer to the fire” 


jumped upon the fire with his wet feet, and 
rolled upon it until he thought it was all out. 
Then he trotted happily away to his cave among 
the icebergs. 

But a little gray robin had been flying near, 
and had seen what the white bear was doing. 

She was greatly worried when she thought 
that the fire might be out, but she was so little 
that she could do nothing but wait until the 
bear was out of sight. 

Then she darted down swiftly and searched 
with her sharp little eyes until she found a tiny 
live coal. This she fanned patiently with her 
wings for a long time. 

Her little breast was scorched red, but she 



78 


NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 


did not stop until a fine red flame blazed up 
from the ashes. 

Then she flew away to every hut in the North¬ 
land. Wherever she touched the ground a fire 
began to burn. 

Soon, instead of one little fire, the whole north 
country was lighted up, so that people far to 
the south wondered at the beautiful flames of 
red and yellow light in the northern sky. 

But when the white bear saw the fires, he 
went farther back into his cave among the ice¬ 
bergs and growled terribly. He knew that now 
there was no hope that he would ever have the 
Northland all to himself. 

This is the reason that the people in the north 
country love the robin, and never tire of telling 
their children how its breast became red. 


THE RED-HEADED WOODPECKER 


PT1HERE was an old woman who lived on a hill. 

You never heard of any one smaller or 
neater than she was. She always wore a black 
dress and a large white apron with big bows 
behind. On her head was the queerest little red 
bonnet that you ever saw. 

It is a sad thing to tell, but this woman had 
grown very selfish as the years went by. People 
said this was because she lived alone and 
thought of nobody but herself. 

One morning as she was baking cakes, a tired, 
hungry man came to her door. “My good 
woman,” said he, “will you give me one of your 
cakes? I am very hungry. I have no money to 
pay for it, but whatever you first wish for you 
shall have.” 

The old woman began to think of all the good 
things she could wish for. But she looked at 
her cakes and decided that they were much too 
large to give away. 

She broke off a small bit of dough and put 
it into the oven to bake. When it was done she 

79 


80 


NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 



“Even this, when it was "baked, looked as large and fine and 
brown as the others” 


thought that it, too, was too large, nice, and 
brown for a beggar. She baked a smaller one 
and then a smaller one, but each one when it 
was done was as large, nice, and brown as the 
first. At last she took a piece of dough only as 
big as the head of a pin; yet even this, when it 
was baked, looked as large and fine and brown 
as the others. She thought how good it would 
taste, and she could not make up her mind to 
give it away. So the old woman put all the 
cakes on the shelf and offered the stranger a dry 
crust of bread. 

The poor man only looked at her and before 
she could wink her eye he was gone. She knew 
now she had done wrong and of course she was 
unhappy. “Oh, I wish I were a bird!” she 









THE RED-HEADED WOODPECKER 81 

cried, “I would fly to him with the largest cake 
on the shelf.’’ As she spoke she felt herself 
growing smaller and smaller until the wind 
whisked her up the chimney. 

She w r as no longer an old woman but a bird, 
for she had her wish and her punishment. She 
still wore her black dress and red bonnet. She 
still seemed to have the large white apron with 
the big bows behind. But from that day on, 
she had always to peck her food from the hard 
wood of trees. And people call this bird, which 
was once a little old woman, the red-headed 
woodpecker. 



PHAETHON 


■pHAETHON was the son of the god Helios, 
-*■ who drove the chariot of the sun. He lived 
with his mother, the gentle Clymene, in a beau¬ 
tiful valley in the east. 

One day when Phaethon was telling his com¬ 
panions about his father, the Sun King, they 
laughed and said, “How do you know that 
Helios is your father? You have never seen 
him. If, as you say, he cannot safely come 
nearer to the earth, why do you not sometimes 
go to him.” 

Phaethon answered, “My father’s throne is 
far away from this valley. My mother has 
promised that when I am stronger I shall go 
to my father’s palace. I often watch his golden 
chariot roll by in its path and think perhaps 
some day I shall drive the glorious horses of the 
sun. I shall go now to my mother, and ask 
her how much longer I must wait.” 

When Phaethon told his mother what his 
companions had said she answered, “Go, my 
child, ask great Helios if you are his son. If 
82 


PHAETHON 


83 


you are worthy to be the son of Helios you will 
be given strength and courage for the journey. ” 
Phaethon gladly bounded away and bravely 
began to climb the unused path which led to the 
palace of the sun. 

At last he came in sight of the throne. He 
had never seen anything so beautiful. On one 
side were standing the days, the months, and 
the old years. On the other side were the 
seasons: Spring, covered with flowers; Summer, 
with her baskets of fruit and grain; Autumn, 
in a many-colored dress; and young Winter, 
with a crown of icicles. 

As Phaethon came nearer to the throne, the 
light was greater than his eyes could bear. Its 
wonderful colors dazzled him. 

Helios saw the brave youth and knew that it 
was Phaethon, his son. He took his shining 
crown from his head and went forward to meet 
him. 

Phaethon cried, “ Great Helios, if you are my 
father, give me and others proof that it is so.” 
Helios took him in his arms and kissed him. 
“You are indeed my son,” he said. “I will put 
an end to your doubts. Ask any gift you will, 
and it shall be yours.” 


84 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

Now Phaethon had always had one great 
desire in his heart, and he quickly said, “Oh, 
my father! Let me drive the wonderful golden 
chariot of the sun for just one day.” Helios 
shook his head sadly and said, “That is the one 
thing which you must not ask to do. You are 
my son, and I love you. For your own sake, 
I cannot let you do this. You have neither the 
strength nor the wisdom for the great work. 
The first part of the way is very steep and 
rugged. In the middle part, even I dare not 
look below at the far-stretching earth, and the 
last part is full of terrible dangers.” 

But Phaethon would not listen. He threw 
his arms around his father’s neck and begged 
to go. Helios said at last, “If you persist, fool¬ 
ish boy, you must have your wish, for I cannot 
break my promise, but I beg of you, choose more 
wisely. Ask the most precious thing on earth 
or in the sky, and you shall have it.” But 
Phaethon had no other wish. “You promised 
me, oh, my father. Let me go,” he cried. 

Already dawn had drawn back the purple 
curtains of the morning and the hours were 
harnessing the horses to the chariot. The stars 
and moon were retiring for the day. The chariot 


PHAETHON 


85 



“The fiery horses soon missed the strong steady hand 
of their master” 


glittered with jewels which sent the light in 
all directions. Phaethon looked upon it with 
delight and longed impatiently for the great joy 
of driving it. 

Helios said, “Oh, my dear son, since go you 
will, go not too high, lest you scorch the dwell¬ 
ings of heaven; nor too low, lest you set the 
world on fire. Keep the middle path; that is 
best, and do not use the whip; rather hold the 
horses in.” 

Phaethon tried to listen to what his father 
was saying, but he was too happy to heed the 
advice. 

He leaped into the golden chariot and stood 
erect as the fiery horses sprang forth from the 
eastern gates of Day. They soon missed the 



86 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

strong steady hand of their master. Up, up they 
went, leaping far into the sky, above the stars, 
and then plunged downward toward the earth. 
The clouds smoked, the mountain tops caught 
fire, many rivers dried up, and whole countries 
became deserts. Great cities were burning, and 
even Poseidon cried out in terror from the sea. 

Then the people on earth learned with what 
great wisdom the path of the sun is planned. 

Helios saw that the whole world would soon 
be on fire, and cried to father Zeus to save the 
earth. Zeus searched all the heavens for clouds 
and hurled his thunderbolts from the sky. 

Phaethon was flung headlong from the chariot. 
Down, down, down he plunged into a clear river 
below him. His sisters saw him fall and came 
weeping to the banks of the river. So that they 
might be always near Phaethon, Zeus, in pity, 
changed them into poplar trees, and their tears 
became clear amber as they fell into the water. 

Left to themselves, the tired horses became 
quiet, the great car rolled slowly back into its 
path, and came safely to the palace of Helios. 

But the deserts and barren mountain tops 
still tell the story of the day Phaethon tried to 
drive the chariot of the sun. 


STORY OF SISYPHUS 


P ERHAPS you have heard of Sisyphus, the 
unfortunate king of Corinth, who because 
of his treachery to the gods was condemned 
to useless and never-ending toil. 

His task was to roll a huge stone to a hilltop, 
but always when the top was reached the rock 
escaped his hands and went crashing back to 
the plain again. 

Then Sisyphus had to begin the toil all over, 
only to fail again, and his punishment was 
never to stop, never to rest, never to finish his 
task. 

But this story is about another Sisyphus, a 
great giant, who is still working in the world. 
He was given the name of Sisyphus because his 
work at first sight seems so much like that of 
the other Sisyphus, the poor old king of 
Corinth. 

When the giant Sisyphus was young he got 
into the habit of being very idle and lazy. 
He lived by the sea and used to lie long hours 

upon the shore. He often dreamed about the 
81 


88 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

wonderful things he would do sometime with 
his great strength, but it was easier to dream 
than to act, and Sisyphus always did the easiest 
thing. 

He envied Aeolus, god of the wind, and 
Poseidon, ruler of the ocean. He saw them 
carrying great ships from one country to 
another, and pitied himself because he, too, 
had not a great work to do. 

As he grew older he became sullen and bit¬ 
ter and blamed every one but himself for his 
own laziness. When he saw the old Ocean 
playing with his lovely little daughter, White 
Cloud, he felt lonely and neglected and was 
jealous of their happiness. 

One day, when her father Ocean was asleep, 
White Cloud went out to walk alone. The Sun 
saw her and said, “Come, White Cloud, I am 
Apollo, your king. You are very beautiful. 
Come and ride upon my bright rays.” 

Now, White Cloud had always longed for this 
very thing, so she went gladly, and soon found 
herself riding among the fleecy clouds in the 
golden chariot of the sun. 

Sisyphus watched her until she was lost to 
sight in the sky. 


STORY'OF SISYPHUS 89 

The moment the old Ocean awoke he called 
his little daughter, for he loved to have her 
near him. She did not answer. He called again 


^8^ 


r 





‘ ‘You shall forever use your strength to push these stones far up 
on the shore , and they shall forever roll back upon you* ” 


and again, louder and still louder, until the 
people said, “Listen, a terrible storm is raging.” 

But the Ocean heard only the echo of his 
own voice from the shore. He rushed far up 
on the beach and moaned aloud. He ran into 
all the caves, but White Cloud could not be found. 



90 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

All the sea family loved White Cloud, so by 
this time the water was white with the crests 
of the weeping sea nymphs, but they called in 
vain for their lost playmate. 

Sisyphus felt sorry for them, but he thought, 
“Now old Ocean will be as lonely as I am. He 
has always neglected me, perhaps now I can 
make a bargain with him.” 

So Sisyphus called to the Ocean and said: 
“I will tell you where White Cloud is, if you 
will do something for me. You are great and 
powerful with the gods. Give me some easy 
work to do, and I will tell you where she is.” 

The Ocean had always despised the giant for 
his laziness and said angrily, “Have you known 
all this time where my child is? Have you stood 
by silently and seen us all suffer? Tell me 
instantly where I may find her! I will promise 
to give you work to do. It is indeed time that 
you had it. But it will not be easy, no work 
that is worth doing is easy.” 

So Sisyphus told the Ocean how Apollo had 
tempted White Cloud away from her home. 
Then the Ocean knew that White Cloud was 
gone forever. He knew that Apollo would never 
let him have her back again. He was terribly 


STORY OF SISYPHUS 


91 


angry and miserable. Then he saw Sisyphus, 
who lay idly before him on the shore and he 
thought of his promise. 

“You say you want a great work to do?” 
He said, “You shall have it. You shall begin 
at once, here, where you have dreamed so much 
of your life away. You shall forever use your 
strength to push these stones far up on the 
shore, and they shall forever roll back upon 
you.” 

And the giant had to obey. He began his 
work that very day and has worked faithfully 
at his hard task ever since. Many children do 
not know what his work is. Do you? 


THE PUDDING STONE 


O NCE upon a time a family of giants lived 
upon the mountains in the West. One day 
the mother giant was called away from home. 
She arose early in the morning and made ready 
the bread and butter for the little giants to 
eat while she was gone. When she had fin¬ 
ished her work it was not yet time to start 
upon her journey. 

She said to herself, “My children are the 
best children in the world and they shall have 
a treat. I have many plums left from the 
Christmas feast. I will make them a plum pud¬ 
ding for a surprise .’ 9 

The good woman brought together the plums 
which it had taken her many days to prepare 
with the help of all her children. Indeed, she 
had emptied several mountain lakes to get 
water enough to wash them all. 

She mixed these wonderful plums into a pud¬ 
ding, beat it well until the plums were well 
mixed and scattered in the dough, and put it 
into the oven to bake. The mixing had taken 

92 


THE PUDDING STONE 


93 



“Let’s make balls of the pudding and see who can throw 
the farthest” 

so long that she had to hurry, and she quite 
forgot to say anything about the pudding to 
the little giants. She had intended to tell them 
about it just before she left them. 

It was afternoon when the giant children, 
playing near the oven, caught a whiff of the 
pudding which by that time had baked until it 
was almost as hard as iron. 

They pushed and pulled a long time at the 
oven door, until at last they got it open and 
the great pudding was before them. The young 
giants sniffed it, and poked it with big sticks. 
Then they tore off the hard top crust and saw 






94 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

the plums. But even then the pudding did not 
look tempting to them. They had already 
eaten their bread and butter and they were 
not at all hungry. 

So one little giant said to the others, “Let’s 
break it up and make balls of it and see who 
can throw the farthest.” 

You know that giants, even young giants, are 
very strong, and away went the pudding up into 
the air. 

The little giants made smaller balls and the 
older giants threw pieces as big as a house. 
Many pieces went over the mountain and fell 
down into the valley beyond. Indeed, this won¬ 
derful pudding was scattered for miles over the 
whole land, for the giant children did not stop 
throwing as long as there was any pudding left 
in the pan. 

Afterward many people who found it, when 
they saw the plums, called it the pudding stone, 
but wise men were not satisfied with this sim¬ 
ple name and called it “conglomerate” rock. 
You may use the name you like best when you 
find it scattered over the land full of the plums 
which the good mother giant had washed with 
the waters of many lakes. 


DAPHNE 


jQAPHNE was the daughter of the River God 
Peneus. 

Her home was in a cave which her father 
had cut for her in a great white cliff. The 
walls of the cave were of marble, and from 
the roof hung crystal chandeliers which Peneus ’ 
servants had made. On the floor was a soft 
green carpet, woven by the water nymphs. 

^ Peneus brought his most beautiful pebbles 
to Daphne’s cave every night. There he sang 
songs to her in the evenings and told her stories 
of his travels. She visited with him the great 
island which he was building in the sea, and 
followed him on many of his wanderings. 

When the morning star shone in the sky, it 
was Daphne who awakened the birds and flow¬ 
ers. With her golden hair flying behind her, 
she sped into the forest. All living things 
awoke when they felt the touch of her rosy 
fingers, and smiled as they saw her happy face. 

The trees and the forest animals were her 
playfellows, and she had no wish for other 

95 


96 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

friends. She learned their ways and could 
understand their speech. The deer could not 
run more swiftly than she, nor the birds sing 
more sweetly. 

One day as she was joyfully leaping and danc¬ 
ing among the rocks, the great God Apollo saw 
her, and thought her the loveliest maiden that 
he had ever seen. “Artemis herself must have 
taught her grace/’ thought he, and he watched 
her all day long as she sped gayly up and down 
the valley, as free and light as a bird in the 
air. 

A great love of her beauty filled Apollo’s 
heart, and at last he called aloud to her. “Stay, 
beautiful daughter of Peneus. Your feet are too 
tender for the hard rocky earth. Come, you 
shall live forever with me in my palace in the 
sky.” Daphne heard him, and was greatly 
frightened. She fled from him wildly. She did 
not want to leave her father, her beautiful cave 
home, and all the things she so dearly loved. 

Pear gave her wings, and faster and faster 
she flew. Her hair streamed behind her like a 
cloud of golden light. 

Apollo followed more swiftly than the wind 
and cried, “Do not fly from me as the lamb 


DAPHNE 


97 


flees from the wolf or the dove the hawk. I 
am not a foe, I am Apollo, god of song and the 
lyre. I will carry you to a home far more 
beautiful than anything you have seen.” 

But Daphne would not listen. Terror drove 
her forward. Soon she felt his breath upon 
her hair, and saw his hands stretched forth to 1 
seize her. Her strength failed and ready to 
sink, she called to Peneus, “Father, save me. 
Change my form, or let the kind earth hide me.” 

Peneus heard her voice, and instantly before 
Apollo’s eyes and almost within his grasp her 
feet became fastened in the soil like roots. 

A soft bark enclosed her body and her beau¬ 
tiful hair changed into the leaves of the laurel 
tree. Then Apollo laid his hand gently upon 
the limbs of the quivering tree and said, “Alas, 
I would have made you happy, but you would 
not listen to me. At least, you shall be my 
tree. As I have eternal youth, so your leaves 
shall know no decay, but shall be ever green. 
Heroes for all time shall be crowned with your 
leaves as an emblem of Victory.” 

So saying Apollo sadly gathered some of the 
leaves of the tree and wove them into a wreath, 
and hung it upon his lyre. 


THE MOUNTAIN ASH 


OOME fairies once lived in a dark glen in a 
^ pine forest. They were real fairies, many 
of them not higher than a pin. 

Their greatest treasure was a magic cap, 
which had been in the fairy family for many 
generations. The most wonderful thing about 
the cap was that it fitted exactly any one who 
wore it. When one fairy put it on, he and all 
the others became invisible. When he took 
it off, it shone like a tiny silver star, so the 
fairies could never lose it. 

A stupid race of giants lived among the 
mountains near the fairies. They had heard of 
the wonderful cap, and wanted it more than 
anything else in the world. 

One warm day when the fairies were away 
from home, a giant came into the glen. He 
was seeking just such a cool place for his after¬ 
noon nap. He was so large and the glen so 
small that when he lay down he almost filled 
the valley. The music of a fairy brook soon 
lulled him to sleep. 


98 


THE MOUNTAIN ASII 


99 


Perhaps you know how a sleeping giant snores 
and puffs. This giant was snoring and p uffin g 
when the fairies came toward home. 

They heard the strange sound and thought a 
great storm was brewing. “There has never 
been such a wind in the glen,” said the fairy 
queen. “We will not go into it. We must seek 
shelter for tonight on this hillside.” 

Just then they came to the giant’s ear. “Here 
is a fine cavern,” said the queen, and she 
stopped and waved her wand.. A fairy hastened 
forward to carry the cap to a safe place in the 
cave, for that was always their first care. 

Just then the giant awoke. He raised his 
great head. Oh, how frightened the fairies were. 
And how unhappy they were when they realized 
that the fairy with the cap was gone. They 
wept and moaned until even the dull ear of the 
giant heard them. It was a sound like the 
tolling of tiny silver bells. He listened and 
managed to understand what the wee voice of 
the prisoner in his ear was saying. He was 
the wisest and most kind-hearted of all the 
giants. He helped the little creature gently out 
into his hand, and looked at him in wonder. 
He had never before seen a fairy. 


100 


NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 



‘How unhappy they were when they realized the fairy xoith 
the cap teas gone ” 


In vain the brave little fellow tried to con¬ 
ceal the precious cap. He tried to put it upon 
his head, but, alas, the giant saw the tiny shin¬ 
ing star, and knew at once that it was the 
treasure cap of the fairies. 

He made the poor little fellow give it to him, 
and then he dropped him carelessly upon a 
toadstool where he was safe enough, but very 
wretched. 








THE MOUNTAIN ASH 101 

The giant shouted for joy when he found that 
the tiny cap exactly fitted his own great head. 

The poor fairies could no longer see the giant, 
for of course he was invisible, but they heard a 
sound like thunder, as he hurried over the stones 
toward his home. Fortunately, he did not step 
upon any of them. 

They were now afraid to move about while 
the sun shone. They crept under leaves and into 
shells and cried bitterly. By sundown, every 
plant in the glen was wet with their tears. 

The sharp eyes of the eagle on the mountain 
top saw them, and a great pity filled his heart. 
“I must help the fairies. Everything loves 
them,” he said. “If I did not I should not be 
worthy to be called the 'king of birds'!” 

He went directly to the home of the giants 
and demanded the cap, but they refused to 
give it up. All that an eagle could do he did, 
but as one of the giants always wore the invisi¬ 
ble cap, he could not see them. He could only 
hear their great voices. He knew, however, that 
the giants were proud of their size and strength, 
and liked above all things to be seen. He was 
sure that they would not wear the cap in their 
games and races, and he did not lose hope. 


102 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

Sure enough, a day came when the giants 
wanted to be seen. They carefully placed the 
precious cap under a large stone on the moun¬ 
tain side below them. But the keen eye of the 
eagle was watching and he flew fearlessly to 
the spot as soon as the giants had left it. He 
lifted the stone in his great talons, and was 
soon flying away with the cap to the fairy 
glen. 

The giants saw him and knew at once what 
he had done, and they began a fierce attack 
upon him. 

The air was filled with flying arrows and 
sharp rocks. Drops of blood fell on the moun¬ 
tain side, and many feathers fluttered down, 
but the brave eagle was soon out of their reach. 
He did not stop until the cap was safe in the 
fairy queen’s lap. 

There was great rejoicing among the fairies 
that day. They had a feast in the eagle’s honor, 
and healed his wounds with fairy magic. 

On the mountain side, wherever the blood and 
feathers had fallen, there sprang up trees with 
feather-like leaves and blood red berries. 

All the fairies, forest plants, and animals 
knew why they grew there. They lived at a 


THE MOUNTAIN ASH 


103 


time when it was commonly believed that the 
blood of unselfish heroes could not die, but 
lived again in some fitting form, and that their 
hero was an eagle, and not a man, did not trouble 
them. 

We wish we might know the fairies ’ name 
for these beautiful trees. The man who named 
them called them the “Mountain Ash,” but that 
is not a good name for them. Any child who 
is old enough to read this story could find a 
better one, for, though these trees often grow 
upon a mountain they are not ash trees at all. 



the rainbow. 

His home was far beyond the dark forest, 
through which he was passing. The pot of 
gold was heavy, and he soon began to look for 
a safe place in which to hide it until morning. 

A poplar tree stood near the path stretching 
its branches straight out from the trunk. That 
was the way the poplar trees grew in those 
days. 


104 



THE POPLAR TREE 


105 


“Ah,” said the man, “this tree is the very 
place in which to conceal my treasure. The 
trees are all asleep, I see, and these leaves are 
large and thick.” He carefully hid the pot of 
gold in the tree where the leaves were thickest, 
and hurried home to tell his wife of his good 
fortune. 

Early the next morning, Iris, the rainbow 
messenger, flew on her golden wings, over the 
rainbow bridge to the earth. At once she missed 
her precious pot of gold. In great alarm she 
hastened to Zeus and told him of her loss. 
Zeus immediately sent swift Hermes in search 
of it. 

Hermes soon came to the forest where it was 
hidden. He awakened the trees and asked them 
if they had seen the pot of gold. They shook 
their heads sleepily, and murmured something 
which Hermes could not understand. 

Great Zeus had been watching the search 
from the sky, and he called to the trees, say¬ 
ing, “Hold your arms high above your heads, 
that I may see that you are all awake.” Up 
went the arms, but, alas, down to the ground 
came the shining pot of gold. 

The poplar tree was more surprised than 


106 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

any one else. He was a very honest tree and 
for a moment hung his head in grief and 
shame. Then again he stretched his arms high 
above his head, and said, “ Forgive me, Great 
Father Zeus. I do not know how this great 
treasure came to be among my branches, but 
hereafter I shall stand always with my arms 
uplifted, so that you may know that I hide 
nothing from the Sun, my King.” 

At first the poplar tree was much laughed 
at. He was often told that he looked like a 
great umbrella which a storm had turned inside 
out. But the poplar tree paid no heed to such 
taunts, for he had his own work to attend to. 

As the years went by every small poplar of 
the family grew hardy, straight, and strong. 
And for this or for some other reason, the pop¬ 
lar tree has become one of the favorite trees of 
the people in every region wTiere it grows. 


PHILEMON AND BAUCIS 


f\N a high hill in Greece, long ago, lived 
Philemon and his wife, Baucis. They had 
always been contented and happy, although 
they were very poor. 

At the time of this story, the people in the 
valley below were very busy. Zeus had sent 
word that he would visit them, and Hermes, his 
messenger, would come with him. 

*■ The people were getting ready great feasts 
and making everything beautiful for their com¬ 
ing. For miles out of the city men were watch¬ 
ing along the roads for the first glimpse of the 
golden chariot and white horses of the king. 

One night, just at dusk, two beggars came 
into the valley. They stopped at every house 
and asked for food and a place to sleep. But 
the people were too busy or too tired or too 
unkind to attend to their needs. At one door 
after another they heard the w r ords, “ Begone, 
we have naught for beggars,” and the little 
children laughed, and threw stones at them as 
they passed through the valleys. 

107 


108 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

Footsore and weary, at last they climbed the 
hill to the hut of Philemon and Baucis. 

Now these good 
people had eaten 
scarcely anything 
for several days, 
that they might 
have food to offer 
the king, but when 
they saw the weary 
strangers, Philemon 
said, “ Surely, these 
men need food more 
than the king.” 

Whereupon h e 
raked the coals from 
the ashes and kindled a fire, and he would have 
killed the only goose they had left to satisfy the 
hunger of their guests had not the goose been 
too nimble for their old age. It took refuge 
between the strangers, who would not permit it 
to be slain. 

In the meantime Baucis rubbed down the 
table with sweet-smelling herbs, and spread her 
one white cloth upon it. She brought out bacon 
and olives, and wild honey and milk. She set 



“A wonderful thing happened' 










PHILEMON AND BAUCIS 109 

these before the strangers in earthen dishes, 
and poured the milk from an earthen pitcher 
into wooden cups. 

Then a wonderful thing happened. The dishes 
which the strangers touched turned to gold; 
the milk in the pitcher became ambrosia, and 
renewed itself as fast as the pitcher was emptied. 

When they saw these things, Philemon and 
Baucis knew that their guests could be none 
other than Zeus and Hermes, and they fell 
upon their knees and begged forgiveness for 
their poor offering. 

But Zeus raised his hand and said, “Arise, 
generous old people. Ask what you will, and 
it shall be yours.” 

Then Philemon and Baucis cried in one 
voice: “Grant, O Zeus, that one of us may 
not outlive the other, but that both may die 
in the same instant.” 

This had long been the wish in each heart. 
The fear of being left alone in the world was 
the one trouble of their old age. 

Zeus smiled and granted their prayer. Then 
he led them to the hilltop beyond the hut. 
When they had reached it and turned their 
eyes backward, in wonder they saw that the 


110 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

valley below them had become a lake, and that 
theirs was the only house left standing. 

To comfort them for the loss of their neigh¬ 
bors, Zeus said: “Do not grieve, good people. 
Those who dwelt in the valley were very wicked 
and unworthy to live. They thought only of 
their own gain. They deserved punishment.’’ 

And then, before their eyes, he turned their 
own poor little house into a beautiful temple, 
with a gilded roof, floors inlaid with gold, and 
an altar ornamented with precious stones. 

He made them the guardians of this temple 
and granted them many years of happy life. 

After a while the lake disappeared and people 
came to live again in the valley. One day these 
people noticed that the beautiful temple had 
vanished. They hurried to the spot and found 
there, growing side by side, two beautiful trees, 
an oak and a linden. High overhead their 
branches met and were interwoven. 

No trace of the good couple could be found, 
but many years after, a traveler lying under 
the trees heard them whispering to each other. 
He lay very still, and learned that in the trees 
Philemon and Baucis still lived, happy and con¬ 
tented and protected by Zeus from all harm. 


CLYTIE 


/^JLYTIE was not always a sunflower, turning 
on her stem to watch the journeying sun. 

Long ago she was a water nymph and lived 
in a cave at the bottom of the sea. The walls 
of the cave were covered with pearls and lovely 
pink sea shells. The floor was made of snow- 
white sand, and the chairs were of amber, 
with soft mossy cushions. 

On each side of the cave opening was a for¬ 
est of coral and sea fans. Behind the cave were 
Clytie’s gardens. Here she spent long hours 
taking care of her sea anemones, her star 
lilies, or in planting rare lands of seaweed. 
Clvtie kept her favorite horses in the garden 
grotto. These were the swift-darting gold fish 
and the slow-moving turtles. 

For a long time she was very happy and con¬ 
tented. The sea nymphs loved Clytie, and wove 
for her dresses of the softest of green sea lace. 
They told her all their best stories. 

One day they took her to the mermaid’s rock 
to hear the mermaid sing. Clytie liked one song 
m 


112 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

best of all. It told of a glorious light which 
shone on the top of the water. After Clytie 
heard this song, she could think of nothing 
else, but longed day and night to see the wonder¬ 
ful light. But no ocean nymph dared take her 
to it, and she grew very unhappy. Soon she 
neglected her garden and all her sea treasures. 

In vain the nymphs begged her to forget the 
enchanting light. They told her that no sea 
nymph had ever seen it, or ever could hope to 
see it. But Clytie would not listen, and to 
escape them she spent more and more of her 
time in her shell carriage, riding far away 
from her cave. In this way she could dream, 
undisturbed, of the glorious light which the 
mermaid had called the “sun.” 

Now it happened that late one summer night, 
when the sea was warm and the turtles were 
going very slowly Clytie fell asleep. Unguided, 
the turtles went on and on and up and up, 
through the green waters, until they came out at 
last close to a wooded island. 

As the waves dashed the carriage against the 
shore, Clytie awoke. Trembling and filled with 
wonder she climbed out of the shell and sat 
down upon a rock. 


CLYTIE 


113 


It was early dawn, and the waking world 
was very beautiful. Clytie had never seen the 
trees and the flowers. She had never heard 
the birds chirping, or the forest wind rustling 
the leaves. She had never smelled the fragrance 
of the meadows, or seen the morning dew upon 
the grass. 

She was dazed by all these wonders, and 
thought that she must be dreaming, but soon 
she forgot all about them, for the eastern sky 
blazed suddenly with light. Great purple cur¬ 
tains were lifted, and slowly a great ball of 
dazzling fire appeared, blinding her eyes with 
its beauty. She held her breath and stretched 
out her arms toward it, for she knew at once 
that this was the glorious light she had dreamed 
about and longed for. This -was the sun. 

In the midst of the light was a golden chariot, 
drawn by four fiery steeds, and in the chariot 
sat a wonderful, smiling king, with seven rays 
of light playing around his crown. 

As the steeds mounted higher and higher in 
their path, the birds began to sing, the plants 
opened their buds, and even the old sea looked 
happy. 

Clytie sat all day upon the rock, her eyes 


114 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

fixed upon the sun with a great love and long¬ 
ing in her heart. 

She wept when the chariot disappeared in 
the west and darkness came over the earth. 
The next day from sunrise to sunset she gazed 
upon the sun, and at night she refused to go 
home. For nine days and nights she sat with 
her golden hair unbound, tasting neither food 
nor drink, only longing more and more for the 
smile of the glorious King. She called to him 
and stretched out her arms, yet she had no 
hope that he would ever notice her or know 
of the great love that filled her heart. 

On the tenth morning, when she leaned over 
the water, she was amazed, for instead of her 
own face, a beautiful flower looked up at her 
from the sea. She gazed long, and at length 
in wonder she knew the truth. Her yellow 
hair had become golden petals, her green lace 
dress had turned into leaves and stems, and her 
little feet had become roots which fastened her 
to the ground. Clytie had become the small and 
humble image of the sun. 

The next morning, when she lifted her face 
to the beautiful light, it was so radiant with 
happiness that the great king himself seemed 


CLYTIE 


115 


to smile back kindly at the happy little flower. 

And so Clytie began her life upon the earth, 
and she became the mother of a large family 
of flowers with bright faces like her own. Her 
children are called sunflowers and you may 
find them scattered all over the country, even 
in the dry and dusty places where other flowers 
will not grow. 

And if you care to, you may find out for 
yourselves whether or not it is true that all 
the sunflowers in the world turn upon their 
stalks, from sunrise until sunset, so that they 
may always keep their faces toward the sun. 




HOW WATER LILIES CAME TO BE 


A YOUNG- Indian boy once saw in the south¬ 
ern sky a star which was brighter and 
more beautiful than all the others. It hung 
so low that it seemed at times to rest upon the 
bare, gray peak of the highest mountain. 

As the boy gazed at the star, it seemed to 
sway gently back and forth, as though it were 
beckoning to him. In wonder, he hastened to 
the lodge of the wise Shanan, the Medicine 
Man of the tribe, and asked him the meaning 
of this strange sight. But the Shanan could 
not explain it. 

The next evening, when the star appeared 
in the same place, the chief men of the village 
took council about it. Some held that there was 
nothing unusual about it: that it was only the 
evening star which had always been seen over 
the mountain peak. Many who knew that this 
was not true, believed that it was an omen 
of disaster. 

The little boy, however, who had first seen 
it, was sure that the beautiful star boded only 
116 


117 


HOW WATER LILIES CAME TO BE 

good to people. He begged them to give the 
star a sign of welcome, so that she might ven¬ 
ture to come to them. “I have no fear,” he 
said. “I will go myself to the mountain and 
speak to her and find out what her mission is.” 

But the people only chided him or ignored 
him completely. No one wanted to listen to a 
young boy speaking about a matter which puz¬ 
zled even the wise Shanan. 

One evening at dusk, when all the people of 
the village had gathered to watch it, sud¬ 
denly the shining star began to move slowly 
away from the gray peak of the mountain. 

In fear and wonder the people saw that a 
host of smaller and dimmer stars followed her. 
On they came, floating just above the tree tops 
of the village. The people were filled with an 
awe so great that no one bade the visitors tarry 
or gave them a sign of welcome. Only a boy’s 
voice called appealingly to the star, and only 
an echo answered it. 

On the next night, and the next, there was 
no star over the mountain. Anxiously, for 
eight nights, the people kept watch, but all in 
vain. But on the ninth night, at sunset, when 
the people looked at the gray mountain peak, 


118 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

the star was there, brighter and more beautiful 
than ever. 

The little boy had thought of nothing else, 
and mourned when he thought that the star 
had been driven away by the unkindness of the 
village Indians. He felt sure that she had some 
good gift or some message from heaven for 
the people, and he determined to go to the moun¬ 
tain and help her, since there was no one else 
who seemed willing to do it. 

All alone, he set out the next morning. He 
knew that he must risk his life in going. No 
Indian had ever dared to climb to the cold 
bleak top of this mountain. Even the eagle 
nested far below its peak. 

At first the boy followed the steep, jagged 
path of the foothills. When he came to the 
end of it, he struggled on. For three days 
and nights he climbed, without rest or sleep. 
His bow and arrows hung idly by his side, for 
he killed no living thing throughout his journey. 
He drank of the mountain streams and ate of 
the wild berries as he hurried on. 

At last, worn and spent, he reached the peak. 
Wearily he dropped to the ground and fell 
into a deep sleep, and dreamed. In his dream 


HOW WATER LILIES CAME TO BE 119 

the star appeared, and it did not seem strange 
to him that she had taken the form of a young 
maiden, or that she was surrounded by Indian 
children, smaller and younger, but not less beau¬ 
tiful than herself. On her forehead shone the 
wonderful, luminous star, and each of the chil¬ 
dren wore a tiny, twinkling star in his crown. 

Then the star maiden spoke to the boy and 
said, “0 brave youth, because of your faith 
and courage and self-sacrifice, we shall be 
allowed to live again in this land of our fore¬ 
fathers. We may not come as mortals, but we 
may choose some beautiful form and live again 
among the children of the earth. 

“Long, long ago, before we became stars, we 
were Indian children and lived in this valley. 
I was the daughter of the chief of the tribe 
and loved beyond all others. 

“Then the earth was young and very beauti¬ 
ful. There was fruit upon every tree and bush. 
The birds sang sweeter songs and had brighter 
plumage in those days. The beasts of the field 
were tame and full of play, and we, the children 
of the valley, were happy all day long. 

“But one terrible day a cruel punishment 
came out of the East, because a great evil had 


120 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

been done in the tribe. Since no one would 
confess the wrong, all had to suffer. In one 
day, all the innocent ones of the village lay 
dead. All the children, even I, the chief's 
daughter, died, and so we became star children. 

“But we loved the earth, and we have never 
lost our longing for it. Now we hope to choose 
a form in which we can live always among the 
children of the village and be loved by them. 
All through the years we have made our prayers 
daily to the Sun and to the Four Great Direc¬ 
tions, which you also worship. At last they 
have consented to grant our prayer. The Great 
Spirit said, ‘If an Indian can be found who will 
give you his faith and be willing to sacrifice 
his life if need be in your behalf, you shall go 
again to the earth.' Noble youth, you have 
done all that the Great Spirit asked. You have 
set us free." 

Then the star children lifted the boy gently 
while he was yet asleep and flew with him 
down to the village and laid him upon the soft 
moss by the lake near his own wigwam. Then 
they waked him and begged him to be ready 
the next evening to tell them what earthly form 
they should take to please other children. 


HOW WATER LILIES CAME TO BE 121 

The people did not know that the little boy 
had gone to the mountain, but the next morn¬ 
ing many of them told a strange tale. They 
said they had seen at sunset hundreds of stars 
come down through the valley and disappear 
into the lake. 

The little boy heard the story, but he did 
not tell of his dream on the mountain. He 
knew that the stars had not gone into the lake; 
that they were waiting among the trees in the 
forest for the evening. 

At dusk the star children trooped from among 
the trees and danced upon the waters of the 
lake. They looked so like a band of tiny, glim¬ 
mering fireflies that no one in the village noticed 
them. But the star maiden came straight to 
the boy and asked him for the answer to their 
great question. She did not wait for sleep or 
dreams to come to him, for she knew that his 
heart was with her and she trusted him. 

Although the boy had tried all day long to 
think of a form that would be pleasing to the 
stars and to the children of the tribe, he had 
failed. The stars reminded him of pure white 
flowers, but there were already many star-like 
blossoms on the trees and on the plains and 


122 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

prairies. He said to himself over and over, 
“These flowers must be different from all others. 
They must be as much more beautiful than 
other flowers as these stars are more beautiful 
than other stars.” 

So when the star maiden appeared before him, 
he was sorrowful, and said: “Nothing that I 
can think of is beautiful enough. You must 
choose, for surely you must know the secret 
of beauty.” But the maiden could think 
of nothing that pleased her, and when dawn 
was close at hand, she went sadly to her com¬ 
panions. She meant to tell them that they must 
wait at least another day. But it was not so. 

It must have been when she saw her reflection 
in the still moonlit waters that she knew her 
quest was ended. The Indian boy heard a happy 
laugh; then for one moment all the star children 
danced about him and thanked him in their 
singing. The next moment they disappeared, 
and they were never seen in the valley again. 

The next morning there was on the lake a 
wonderful carpet of great green and purple 
leaves, and, floating among them, were hundreds 
of pure white flowers, as radiant upon the blue 
waters as stars ever were in the sky. 


HOW WATER LILIES CAME TO BE 123 

And the children of the village loved them 
and pushed their canoes in and out among 
them, and shouted for joy when they found the 
largest lily of all, which was far too beautiful 



“The children of the village loved them” 


to pick. And the little water bugs and frogs 
sat upon the spreading leaves in great content. 

The Indian boy kept his secret, and though 
he may have thought that these beautiful flow¬ 
ers should have been called star lilies, he was 
willing to have the children who loved them call 
them water lilies. But the older Indians of the 
tribe took counsel and gave to the beautiful 
flower another name. They called it wah-be- 
gwan-nee, which means great white flower. 













ARACHNE 


A RACHNE was a beautiful maiden who had 
wonderful skill in weaving and embroidery. 
The nymphs left their groves and fountains to 
gather round her loom. The naiads came from 
the rivers and the dryads from the trees, and 
were never tired of watching her. 

She took the wool as it came from the backs 
of the newly-washed sheep and formed it into 
rolls; she separated it with her deft fingers, and 
carded it until it looked as light and soft as 
a cloud. She twirled the spindle in her skillful 
hands and wove the web. Often she embroid¬ 
ered it with her needle in beautiful, soft colors. 

Arachne's father was famed throughout the 
land for his skill in coloring. He dyed her wool 
in all the hues of the rainbow. 

Her work was so wonderful that people said, 
“Surely Athene must have taught this maiden.” 
But Arachne proudly denied this. She could 
not bear to be thought a pupil even of the 
goddess of the loom. 

“If Athene thinks she can weave better than 

124 


ARACHNE 


125 



‘Athene can help you no more until you grow less selfish 
and vain’” 


I, let her try her skill with mine,” said she 
boastfully. “If I fail, I will pay the penalty.” 

In vain her father told her that perhaps 
Athene, unseen, guided her hands. Arachne 
would not listen, and would thank no one for 
her gift, for vanity had turned her head. She 


















126 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

said again, “Let Athene try her skill with mine 
if she dares. ” 

One day as she was boasting to the nymphs 
of the beauty of her work, an old woman 
appeared before her and advised her to accept 
her rare gift humbly. Arachne looked at the 
old woman angrily and said, “Keep your advice 
for others, old dame. I do not need it.” But 
the old woman said, “Listen to me. I have great 
age and much experience, and I have come to 
warn you. Hitherto Athene has aided you, ask¬ 
ing for no gratitude, but she can help you no 
more until you grow less selfish and vain. 
Above all, I advise you to ask forgiveness of 
Athene. Perhaps she may yet pardon your 
selfish pride. Challenge your fellow mortals, if 
you will, but do not, I beg of you, seek to com¬ 
pete with the goddess.” 

But Arachne said, “Begone. I fear not 
Athene, no, nor any one else. Nothing would 
please me so much as to weave with Athene, but 
she is afraid to weave with me.” 

Then suddenly the old woman threw aside her 
cloak, and there before Arachne *s very eyes 
stood a tall, majestic, gray-eyed goddess, 
crowned with a golden helmet. 


ARACHNE 


127 


‘Athene is here,” she said. Then the nymphs 
bent low in homage; but Arachne stood erect. 
She grew pale but gave no other sign of fear. 

Come, foolish girl, since you wish to try your 
skill with me,” said Athene, “let the contest 
begin.” 

Both went quickly to work, and for hours 
their shuttles flew swiftly in and out. Athene 
used the sky for her loom, and in it she wove 
a picture too beautiful to describe. If you wish 
to know more about it, look at the western sky 
when the sun is setting. 

She was still merciful, and at length she began 
a smaller web nearer to Arachne’s loom. In this 
she wove a warning, showing how other boastful 
mortals had failed when they dared to compete 
with the gods. She hoped that the girl would 
even yet repent her rashness. But Arachne 
refused this last chance to save herself. She 
would not lift her eyes from her own work. 

Her weaving was so fine and beautiful that 
even Athene was forced to admire it. The fig¬ 
ures upon it seemed ready to speak and to live, 
but into her web she had woven many of the 
faults and failings of the gods, and her work 
was full of spite. 


128 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

When the task was finished, Araehne lifted 
her eyes to Athene’s work. Instantly she knew 
that she had failed. Ashamed and miserable, 
she tried to hang herself in her own web, but 
Athene cried, “Stay, wretched and perverse girl. 
You shall not die. You shall live to do the work 
for which you are best fitted. You and your 
children shall be among the greatest spinners 
and weavers upon the earth. You shall be the 
mother of a great race, which shall be called 
spiders. Wherever men shall see your web, 
they shall destroy it even as I destroy yours,” 
and as she spoke, the goddess with her shuttle, 
tore the maiden’s wonderful web from top to 
bottom. 

Then Athene touched Araehne’s forehead with 
her spindle thrice, and she became smaller and 
smaller, until she was scarcely larger than a fly. 

And from that day to this Araehne and her 
family have been faithfully spinning and weav¬ 
ing, but they do their work so quietly and in 
such dark places that few people know what 
marvelous webs they weave. Some early morn¬ 
ing, you may see their webs gleaming with dew, 
spread across the grass or hanging between the 
branches of a tree. 


AURORA AND TITHONUS 


nn HE beautiful youth Tithonus loved Aurora, 
queen of dawn. He was first to greet her 
each day as she drew back the purple curtains 
of the east. He made his bed on the green 
meadow grass that he might not miss her 
coming. 

Aurora grew to expect his welcome and to 
love the youth dearly. One morning Tithonus 
was not in his usual place. Looking anxiously 
around she saw him with pale face and closed 
eyes lying upon the ground. 

She darted down to earth and carried his 
almost lifeless body to Zeus. She begged the 
great king to promise that Tithonus should 
never die, and Zeus granted her prayer. 

For many years Tithonus lived with the gods 
upon Mount Olympus in great happiness. He 
fed upon ambrosia, and Aurora herself taught 
him music and the dance. But alas, in her haste 
the goddess had forgotten to ask that Tithonus 
might forever remain young. Therefore, in time, 
like any other mortal, he began to grow old and 

129 


130 


NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 


bent and feeble. His voice became cracked and 
unpleasant and he was shunned by all the gods. 
In misery he begged to go back to the cool grass 
in the meadow where he had been so happy. 

Aurora wept in pity for him and said, “You 
shall go back to earth, my Tithonus. To make 

you happy is still 



my dearest wish. 
You shall be free 
from all care. You 
shall not be a man, 
lest you be com¬ 
pelled to work for 
your food in your 
old age. You shall 


A grasshopper 


live each season in a form entirely comfortable 
to you. In summer you shall be a grasshopper. 
You shall feed upon ambrosia, and be free to 
sing and dance all the long pleasant days.” 

Then she gave Tithonus the wonderful grass¬ 
hopper coat of mail which had never been on 
earth before. She tinted it soft green that it 
might not be noticed on the grass. That very 
day Tithonus went to the meadow, and there 
any summer day you may find him and his 
family, hopping merrily about in the sunshine. 





HOW THE MOLE BECAME BLIND 


A N Indian hunter once saw a squirrel sunning 
-^"^himself in a tree top. The squirrel saw the 
hunter raise his bow, and he leaped upon a pass¬ 
ing cloud, and escaped into Cloudland before an 
arrow could reach him. 

The Indian set a trap in the tree top, hoping 
that he would soon return for food. 

Now the sun happened to be coming that way 
and was caught in the trap and suddenly, in the 
middle of the day, it became dark. The Indian 
was frightened and cried, “What have I done! 
I have surely caught the sun in my trap.” 

He sent many of the bravest animals of the 
forest up to set it free, but all were instantly 
burned to ashes. 

At last the mole said, “Let me try. I shall 
bore through the ground of the sky and gnaw 
off the cords which hold the trap.” It seemed 
a good idea, and the mole set to work at once, 
but just as he loosened the last cord the sun 
sprang forth and the bright light shone full in 
the poor mole’s eyes. The sun was free, but the 

131 


132 


NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 


brave mole dropped to the earth, and though his 
friends were able to save his life, he was blind. 

“You need not pity me,” he said, “Hence¬ 
forth I shall live underground, where really, you 
know, I shall have no use for my eyes.” 

All the moles were, of course, proud of this 
hero mole who had saved the sun; therefore it 
is not surprising that they tried to be like him 
in every way. They, too, went to live in dark 
holes in the earth, and their eyes, which they 
did not need to use, in time became so small 
that they were entirely hidden by their fur—so 
deeply hidden, indeed, that many people think 
the entire mole family is blind. 




HOW THE CHIPMUNK GOT ITS STRIPES 

jT^O YOU know the little striped chipmunk 
which lives in our woods? 

He has a cousin in far-off India called the 
geloori. It is said the stripes came on the back 
of the geloori in a wonderful way. 

One day the great god Shiva saw a little gray 
chipmunk on the seashore. He was dipping his 
bushy tail into the sea, and shaking out the 
water on the shore. Twenty times a minute he 
dipped it into the ocean. In wonder, Shiva said, 
“What are you doing, you foolish little gray 
geloori? Why do you tire yourself with such 
hard labor V 9 

The geloori answered, “I cannot stop, great 
Shiva. The storm blew down the palm tree, 
where I built my nest. See! the tree has fallen 
seaward, and the nest lies on the water; my wife 
and little ones are in it; I am afraid that it will 
float away. Therefore all day and all night I 
must dip the water from the sea with my tail. I 
hope soon to bale it dry. I must surely save my 
darlings even if I spoil my tail.” 

133 


134 


NATURE MY.TITS AND STORIES 



“*I must save my darlings even if I spoil my tail’” 


Shiva stooped and with his great hand stroked 
the little squirrel, and there on the geloori’s 
soft fur from his nose to the end of his tail, 
there came four brownish-green stripes! They 
were the marks of Shiva’s fingers, placed there 
as the sign of the geloori’s love. 

Shiva raised his hand, and the water rolled 
back from the shore. Safe among the rocks and 
seaweeds, the palm tree lay on dry land. 

The squirrel hastened to it; his tail was now 
high in the air. He found his wife and children 
all unharmed, waiting for him, warm and dry 














HOW THE CHIPMUNK GOT ITS STRIPES 135 

and very comfortable in their house of woven 
grass-blades. 

As they chattered their welcomes to him, the 
geloori noticed with delight that each smooth 
little back was striped with the marks of Shiva’s 
fingers. And this sign of love is still to be seen 
upon the back of these chipmunks. That is the 
reason why in India, good men never kill them. 

A man who loves both children and chip¬ 
munks says, when he tells this story, “Perhaps 
our squirrels, though Shiva never stroked them, 
would be grateful if we left them, unharmed, 
to play in the maples in our woods.” 



THE TRAVELING MUSICIANS 


/^NCE upon a time there was a donkey who 
^ had grown so old that he no longer liked to 
work, and one night he heard his master say 
that it was time to turn him out on the road 
to die. 

The old donkey did not want to die, so he 
determined to leave his home. He arose early 
the next morning and walked sadly down the 
road. His long ears hung down drearily, and 
he was thinking deeply. 

Suddenly an idea came to him which cheered 
him greatly and he felt years younger. Joy 
lifted his ears, and he broke into a lively trot. 

Soon after this he met a dog on the road. 
The dog looked so sad, with his tail hanging 
down in the dust, that the donkey stopped and 
said, cheerfully, “How do you do, Dog? Why 
are you so sad?” 

The dog answered, “Oh, you see, I am very 
old. For many years I guarded my master’s 
home, but now I am too old to work. I only 
want to eat and sleep. It doesn’t seem right to 

136 


THE TRAVELING MUSICIANS 137 

eat when one cannot work, so I am going away 
to die.” 

“Oh,” said the donkey, “don’t do that. Come 
with me. Can you sing?” 

“Oh, yes,” said the dog, “I can sing. Bow 
wow! I have always had a beautiful bass voice, 
but what is the use of that?” 

The donkey said, “You shall see. I, too had 
a beautiful voice. Come with me, and we will 
sing for a living.” 

The dog agreed, greatly cheered. Joy curled 
his tail up over his back and he and the donkey 
trotted on. 

They had not gone far when they met a cat 
who was looking very miserable indeed. Even 
her whiskers hung down, and she kept her eyes 
on the ground. 

The dog said cheerfully, “How do you do, 
Cat? What is the matter? Why do you look 
so sad?” 

The cat answered, “Oh, you see, I am very 
old. I used to catch all the mice and rats in my 
master’s house, and so I grew to be the pet of 
the family, but now I am so old I don’t like to 
work. I only want to lie by the fire and dream. 
Last night I heard my mistress say, ‘ Those 


138 


NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 


should not eat who cannot work,’ and so I am 
crawling off to die.” 

“Oh,” said the dog, “don’t do that. Come 
with us. Can you sing?” 

“Oh, yes, I can sing. Meow, meow! People 
used to get up in the night to listen to me, but 
of what use is that?” 

“Oh, you shall see. Come with us. We are 
going to sing for a living,” said the dog. 

The cat agreed, greatly cheered. Joy lifted 
her whiskers, so that she looked very gay, and 
she and the dog and the donkey trotted on down 
the road. 

They had not gone far when they heard a 
strange, sad song, “Cock-a-doodle-doo-oo-oo!” 
They stopped and listened. They thought they 
had never heard such a sweet and sorrowful 
sound. 

They went on, and soon saw a cock, sitting 
on a kitchen fence, crowing as if his heart would 
break. 

“How do you do, Rooster? What is the mat¬ 
ter? What makes you so sad?” said the cat. 

“Oh,” said the cock, “if you were in my 
plight, you would be sad too. I have taken care 
of this flock of hens all my life, and now I have 


THE TRAVELING MUSICIANS 139 

grown old. Last night I heard my mistress say, 
‘Tomorrow, I shall put the old cock in the pot 
for dinner.’ ” 

“Oh,” said the donkey and the dog and the 
cat in one voice, “not that! She should never 
be allowed to cook that beautiful voice. No, 
no! Come with us. We are going to sing for 
a living.” 

And the rooster agreed, much cheered. Joy 
lifted his wings, and he flew happily after them. 

All day long the rooster and cat and dog and 
donkey traveled on. It was getting quite dark, 
when at last they came to a great tree, and the 
donkey said, “Here I must rest. Though I am 
hungry, I can go no farther today.” 

They all agreed and each one prepared to 
make himself comfortable for the night. The 
donkey walked around the tree and stretched 
himself out on the grass. The dog turned round 
and round and dug out a fine bed at the foot of 
the tree. The cat was more particular. After 
sniffing about for sometime, she climbed up and 
curled herself comfortably into a wide crotch 
in the tree. The rooster flew straight to the 
very top of the tree and began to shut his sleepy 
eyes. 


140 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

Suddenly he opened them very wide. Surely 
that was a bright gleam of light among the 
trees, was it a star? No. And having made 
sure of it, he called to his companions, “I see 
a light! Perhaps it comes from a house and 
we might find food there if we could go on a 
little farther. It seems quite near.” 

They were all very hungry, so they were glad 
to go on. Soon they came to a little house in the 
woods. There was loud laughter inside, and a 
bright light, but alas, the window was too high 
from the ground for them to see what was going 
on in the room. And then the donkey had 
another idea. He said, “I will put my feet on 
the side of the house, and the dog can stand on 
my shoulders, and the cat can stand on his 
shoulders, and the rooster can stand on the cat’s 
shoulders, and then he can look into the room 
and tell us what he sees. Perhaps, if we all 
sing nicely together, they will give us some¬ 
thing to eat.” 

They followed the donkey’s advice. When the 
cock saw what was going on in the room, he 
whispered the good news down to the others: 
“I see robbers,” he said, “and they are having 
a very good time. I see delicious food—the 


THE TRAVELING MUSICIANS 


141 



" ‘Come, we must sing our best , 1 said the donkey ” 


favorite food of each one of us. Behind the door 
is a heap of hay.” (Here the old donkey brayed 
quietly with joy.) “On the table is a great dish 
of meat.” (Here the dog barked softly with 
pleasure.) “There is a big pan of milk on the 
shelf.” (Here the cat purred aloud with 
delight.) “And there is more cbm hanging by 
the fireplace than I could eat in many days and 
nights.” (And here the rooster crowed care¬ 
fully under his breath.) 

“Come, then, we must sing our best,” said 
the donkey. Then the donkey and the dog and 










142 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

the cat and the rooster all took a deep breath 
and began to sing. 

He-ee haw, he-ee haw! 

Bow-wow, wow! 

Meow, meow! 

Cock-a-doodle-doo-oo! 

And you can never know what it sounded 
like unless you hear such a chorus yourself. 

Then a strange thing happened. Instead of 
listening as they should, the frightened robbers 
leaped to their feet and ran as fast as they could 
out into the dark forest. 

“Now, why did they do that?” questioned the 
donkey. “Perhaps robbers do not enjoy music. 
In that case we may have to pay for our supper, 
and we haven’t a penny in our pockets; but 
never mind, perhaps the house isn’t theirs at 
all. One never can tell about robbers and their 
doings.” 

After a while as the robbers did not come 
back, and the donkey and the dog and the cat 
and the rooster were very hungry, they went 
into the house and had a beautiful feast, and 
then looked around for places to sleep. The 


THE TRAVELING MUSICIANS 143 

donkey said, “Dear me, it is too hot in here for 
me!” and he went out and stretched himself 
under a big tree in the yard. 

The dog looked around and saw the hay 
behind the door and lay down upon it with a 
deep, contented sigh. The cat went to the fire¬ 
place, in which the fire was burning low, and 
purred herself softly to sleep. The rooster blew 
out the light and flew up to a rafter. But soon 
he said, “How any one can sleep in this hot 
house I cannot see. I am going out.” This he 
did, and soon found a place that suited him on 
the tiptop of the roof. 

They had just gotten nicely settled for sleep, 
when the bravest robber came back to see what 
the terrible noise had been that frightened them 
so. The house was dark and still. He went 
boldly into it, and he saw what he thought were 
two live coals shining in the fireplace. They 
were really the great shining eyes of the cat 
watching him. 

He pulled out a match and tried to light it on 
the coals. But the cat wouldn’t have that, not 
she. She knew exactly what to do when people 
were rude to her. She sprang at his face and 
scratched him spitefully. Amazed and howling 


144 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

with pain, the robber started for the door. 
Unfortunately, he stepped on the dog’s tail, but 
the dog wouldn’t have that, he wouldn’t lie still 
and be hurt, not he. He snarled savagely and 
sunk his teeth into the man’s leg. 

Frightened almost to death, the robber ran 
out as fast as he could. He could not see, so he 
stumbled over the old donkey under the tree. 
But the donkey wouldn’t have that, he kicked 
out vigorously when he was disturbed, and then 
went off to sleep again. 

Now the robber made such a noise, that he 
awakened the rooster, who crowed as loud as 
he could, thinking it must be morning. 

At last, when the robber, more dead than 
alive, got back to his mates, he said, “Let us 
fly. We must never go back to that wretched 
place again. It is bewitched. In the house there 
was a horrible old crone sitting by the fireplace. 
She clawed at my eyes with her long bony 
fingers, so that I doubt if I shall ever see again. 

“Behind the door, on guard, was a man with 
a terrible knife, who stabbed me in the leg, so 
that I doubt if I shall ever walk again. 

“Out under the tree was a huge monster, with 
a great club, who struck me so fiercely that I 


THE TRAVELING MUSICIANS 145 

doubt if I ever get my full health again, and 
most frightful of all, there was a dreadful 
creature, keeping watch high above the house 
who cried out, 4 Throw the rascal up here! 
Throw the rascal up here! H - e - r - e!’ ” 

And forever after, the story says, the donkey 
and the dog and the cat and the rooster lived 
happily in the little house in the woods, singing 
only for the pleasure of their friends. 


THE DONKEY AND THE SALT 


O NE time a merchant went to the seashore 
for a load of salt. There were many hills 
and streams to cross on the journey. As the 
path was narrow and rocky, the man made his 
donkey carry the salt in large bags, upon his 
back. It was a warm day, and the donkey did 
not like his heavy load. So he hung down his 
head and went just as slowly as he could. Often 
his master had to push hard to keep him going. 

After a while they came to a stream which 
had only a footbridge over it. The donkey went 
through the water, splash! splash! splash! 
Now it happened that in the middle of the 
stream was a large stone which he did not see. 
He stumbled and fell, and the water ran over 
the bags of salt. But soon he was glad that he 
had fallen, for he found his load much lighter. 

After a wnile they came to another stream, 
but the donkey did not stumble this time. He 
lay down and rolled over and over in the middle 
of the brook, for he was a wise old donkey. 
This time he lost so much salt that his master 

14 $ 


THE DONKEY AND THE SAL.T 147 



“He hung down Ms head and went just as slowly as he could” 


was angry, for he was obliged to go all the way 
back to the seashore for another load, and he did 
not see how he was ever to get the salt home. 

As they were walking along, suddenly the 
merchant laughed to himself. He thought he 
knew a way to cure the donkey of this trick. 
When they came to the seashore, he kept on 
laughing as he filled the bags with sponges, and 
they started for home. 

But the donkey thought, “What a light load 









148 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

I have,” and he trotted gaily along over the 
rough road. 

Again they came to the brook. “Ah!” 
thought the donkey, “I will make my load still 
lighter,” so he lay down and rolled over in the 
middle of the brook. But alas, this time he 
found his load so heavy that he could scarcely 
rise. His master kindly helped him, but the 
donkey was not happy. The water ran down 
his sides and made him more miserable. “Oh,” 
thought he, “I wish I hadn’t done it. I will 
never lie down in the water again.” 

Once more his master led him back to the 
seashore. Again he filled the bags with salt. 
But the donkey was wiser now and stepping 
carefully he carried the salt safely home. 


KING SOLOMON AND THE BEE 


T ONG- ago there sat upon the throne of Israel 
^ a king who exceeded all the kings of the 
earth in riches and in wisdom. And the throne 
of the king was made of ivory overlaid with the 
best gold; and the top of the throne was round, 
with a footstool of gold, and there were six 
steps up to the throne which were fastened to 
the throne. Twelve lions stood there on the 
one side and on the other upon the six steps, and 
there was not the like made in any kingdom. 

And all the earth sought King Solomon who 
sat upon this throne in Jerusalem, to hear the 
wisdom which God had put into his heart. 

And it was rumored abroad that King Solo¬ 
mon knew all trees, and all plants and all their 
divers ways of growing and all their benefits. 

He understood also the beasts of the field and 
the fowls of the air and the creeping things upon 
the earth. 

. The fame of his knowledge spread into all 
lands. And when the Queen of Sheba, who lived 
in the far South, heard of the wonderful wisdom 

149 


150 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

of Solomon she came to Jerusalem to prove him 
with hard questions, and with her came a very 
great company, with camels that bore spices and 
gold and abundance of precious stones. 

King Solomon told her all her questions, and 
there was nothing hid from Solomon that he 
told her not. But it is said that the spirit of 
doubting had not yet gone out of the Queen of 
Sheba and she desired to prove King Solomon 
yet further. 

So she caused to be brought forth two bou¬ 
quets of flowers—one w T hich she had charged 
her servants to pluck fresh from the fields and 
one which she had had cunningly wrought in 
wax. 

And when the two bouquets had been placed 
before the King, behold, there was not so much 
difference between them in appearance or color, 
as between one golden shekel and another. And 
the Queen of Sheba said.to Solomon, “Choose, 
0 wise King, which are the real flowers.” Then 
King Solomon looked long upon the flowers and 
seemed perplexed even while he praised the 
cunning device. But, presently, King Solomon 
beheld a bee buzzing near the open doorway, and 
he bade his servants bring unto him a hive of 


KING SOLOMON AND THE BEE 


151 



“The lees j flew straight to the real flowers” 


honey bees and place them before the throne, 
and when it was done, lo, the bees flew straight¬ 
way to the real flowers, and made known the 
answer to the question of the Queen, even as 
King Solomon in his knowledge had foreseen it. 

And it is said that then the spirit of doubting 
went out of the great Queen and she bowed her 
head and said to the King, “It was a true 
















152 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

report that I heard in mine own land of thy acts 
and of thy wisdom. How be it, I believed not 
the words until I came and mine eyes had seen 
it; and behold the one-half of thy greatness and 
of thy wisdom was not told unto me. Happy are 
thy people and happy are these thy servants, 
which stand continually before thee and that 
hear thy wisdom.” 

Then the Queen of Sheba gave King Solomon 
a hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of 
spices a great store, and precious stones in 
abundance. 

And King Solomon gave unto the Queen of 
Sheba all her desires, whatsoever she asked and 
much more besides from his royal great bounty, 
before she returned, she and all her servants, 
unto her own country in the far South. 


KING SOLOMON AND THE ANTS 


A ND it came to pass that when the Queen of 
Sheba set forth upon her journey to her 
home in the South, King Solomon and all his 
court went with her to the gates of the city. 

It was a glorious sight, and the like had not 
been seen in Jerusalem until that day. 

And first in the great procession came the 
King’s chariot, which Solomon had had made 
for himself of the wood of Lebanon, and the 
pillars thereof were of silver, and the bottom 
thereof of gold and the coverings were of purple 
and fine gold. And behind it came the king’s 
men of war, in armour and with shields of beaten 
gold; and his captains upon horses brought out 
of Egypt; and great princes in scarlet and pur¬ 
ple robes riding upon camels with gorgeous 
trappings. And behind these came all the great 
company which had come into Jerusalem with 
the queen, followed by the king’s ministers and 
attendants w T ith harps and psalteries for the 
singers, and his cup bearers. And these all bore 
with them the gifts which King Solomon had 

153 


154 NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

bestowed upon the Queen of Sheba. And there 
were among the presents vessels of gold filled to 
overflowing with sweet spices and myrrh and 
honey and rare old wine; there was linen and 
fine tapestry and much more besides, for the 
king withheld nothing from the Queen of Sheba 
which had pleased her in the kingdom. And 
the Queen of Sheba rode by the side of Kin g 
Solomon at the head of the great procession and 
communed with him of all that was in her heart. 

And when they had come some distance on 
this journey the king cast down his eyes and 
beheld in the pathway before them, upon the 
high road, an ant hill and he said, “Behold 
yonder little people. Dost thou hear what they 
are saying one to another, as they run hither 
and thither in great fear and distress? They 
are saying, ‘Here comes King Solomon, even he 
whom all people call wise and good and great; 
he will trample us under his cruel feet.’ ” 

Then the queen answered and said, “How 
dare they complain? Proud, rather, should the} 
be to die under thy feet, 0 mighty Solomon.” 

“Not so, great Queen,” said the King, and 
slowly he turned his chariot aside, and all they 
that followed him did likewise. 


KING SOLOMON AND THE ANTS 


155 


And behold when all had passed the place, 
there stood the small ant hill unharmed upon 
the high road of Jerusalem. 

The great Queen bowed her head again and 
said, “Happy indeed are thy people, those in 
high places and those most helpless and weak. 
Verily thy goodness exceedeth thy fame.” 

And when they had come to the gates, and 
the Queen had given her thanks to the King for 
the gifts of his bounty, and the meat upon his 
table and the delights of his Kingdom, she said 
farewell to him; and she and the servants with 
her departed thence, and as they journeyed 
southward from Jerusalem, the Queen pondered 
deeply in her heart all the things that she had 
seen and heard. 














THE GODS OF ANCIENT GREECE 


Most of the myths in this hook are old Greek 
nature myths, and since the originals from which 
our stories are taken are among the most beautiful 
and best known myths in the world, you will want 
to know a little more about the gods of ancient 
Greece. 

Greece, as you know, is a very small country with 
high mountains in every part of it. Some of these 
mountains reached above the clouds, and made great 
walls around the cities of the early Greeks. Some¬ 
times men lived all their lives near the sea and 
never saw it. These people, shut up in the small 
valleys of Greece, had beautiful thoughts and fancies. 
Some of the statues of their gods, which they carved 
from the marble in their mountains, and even the 
ruins of the beautiful temples which they built in 
honor of their gods, are still among our most won¬ 
derful works of art. 

Most of the great gods they worshipped are men¬ 
tioned in the stories of this book. They are Zeus, 
ruler over all the gods of heaven and earth, and 
Hera, his wife and queen; his brother Hades, ruler 
of the realm of darkness where the spirits of the 
dead dwelt; his brother Poseidon, ruler of the king- 
156 


THE GODS OF ANCIENT GREECE 


157 


dom of the sea and of all waters; his two sisters, 
Hestia, goddess of hearth and fireside, and Demeter, 
the Earth-mother, who had charge over the sowing 
of the crops and the harvesting of the grains and 
fruits. In addition to these, seven of Zeus’ chil¬ 
dren were counted among the greater gods of Greece, 
and these dwelt with him npon Mount Olympus 
in the sunny regions between heaven and earth. 
The names of these favored children were Athene, 
goddess of wisdom and skill; Apollo, god of the sun 
and music, and his twin sister Artemis, the fair moon- 
goddess; fierce Ares, the war god; Aphrodite, the 
goddess of love and beauty; the lame Hephaestus, 
god of fire and forge; and Hermes, swift messenger 
of heaven, carrying with him the magic wand of 
health, happiness, and dreams. 

Besides these there were many lesser gods, for the 
Greeks peopled the heavens, the earth, the waters, and 
the air with special deities too numerous to speak 
of here. Some of them are very well known, such 
as Pan, god of the woods and fields; the dryads, 
who lived in the trees and died when the trees died; 
and the Naiads, who guarded the streams and foun¬ 
tains and all fresh waters. 

The gods of the Roman people were borrowed 
almost wholly from the Greeks, and given Roman 
names. You will need to recognize the gods when 
Roman names are used in literature, and for this 
purpose you will find a key in the following list 
of names: 


158 

NATURE MYTHS AND STORIES 

GREEK 

ROMAN 

GREEK 

ROMAN 

Zeus 

Jupiter 

Athene 

Minerva 

Hera 

Juno 

Apollo 

Phoebus 

Hades 

Pluto 

Artemis 

Diana 

Poseidon 

Neptune 

Ares 

Mars 

Hestea 

Vesta 

Hephaestus 

Vulcan 

Hemeter 

Ceres 

Hermes 

Mercury 


KEY TO PRONUNCIATION 


a, as in fate; &, as in sen'ate; a, as in fat; a, as in ask; a, as in arm. 

e, as in eve; 6, as in 6-vent'; 8, as in Snd; e, as in ev'er. 

I, as in Ice; I, as in Ill. 

o, as in old; 6, as in 6-bey'; 6, as in 6r'der; 6 , as in n6t. 

oo, as in food; ou, as in out, do as in foot. 

u, as in use; 6, as in 6-nite'; 6, as in ftirl; ii, as in ftp. 

ch, as in chair; j, as in joke; sh, as in ship; th, as in thin; th, as in then. 


GREEK 

Abyss, a-bls' 

Aeolus, e'6-liis 
Alcinous, ai-sln'6-tis 
Apollo, a-p6l'o 
Arachne, a-rak'ne 
Artemis, a 'tS-mls 
Athene, a-the'ne 
Aurora, 6-ro'ra 
Baucis, bd'sls 
Caduceus, ka-dQ'-s6-tis 
Chaos, ka'6s 
Clytie, kll'ti-e or kli't6 
Cronus, kro'niis 
Cyclops, sl'kldps 
Daphne, daf'nS 
Deities, de'I-tlz 
Demeter, dS-me'tdr 
Dryad, drl'ad 
Epimetheus, gp'I-mS'thtis 
Hades, ha'dez 
Helios. he'll-6s 
Hera, he'ra 


Hephaestus, h6-f6s'tiis 
Hercules, htir'kll-lSz 
Hermes, hdr'mez 
Hestia, hSs'tl-a 
Iris, I'rls 
Lyre, llr 

Maia, ma'ya or ml'a 
Myth, mlth 

Mythology, mI-th6l'o-jI 
Naiad, na'y&d or ni'ftd 
Olympus, 6-lIm'ptis 
Pan, p8n 
Peneus, pS-ne'iis 
Persephone, per-s6f'6-n6 
Phaeacian, f6-a'shan 
Phaethon, fa'6-th6n 
Philemon, fl-le'm6n 
Poseidon, p6-s!'d6n 
Prometheus, pr6-me'thus 
Rhoecus, re'ktls 
Sisyphus, els'I-ftis 
Titans, tl'tanz 
Tithonus, tl-thd'ntis 
Zeus, zus 


THE GODS OF ANCIENT GREECE 


159 


ROMAN 

Ceres, Se'rez 
Diana, dl-&n'a 
Juno, joo'no 
Jupiter, joo'pl-ter 
Mars, marz 
Mercury, miir'ktl-rl 
Minerva, mi-ntir'va 
Neptune, ngp'thn 
Phoebus, fe'btts 
Pluto, ploo'to 
Vesta, vSs'ta 
Vulcan, vtil'k&n 

NORSE 

Asgard, &s'gard 

Audhiunbla, ou'thoom-la 

Balder, bol'der 

Bori, boo'rd 

Edda, £d'a 

Frigga, frlg'ga 

Hela, hel'a 

Hermod, h8r'm5d 

Hoder, He'der 

Loki, lo'k$ 

Midgard, mld'gard 
Nanna, nan'na 
Odin, 6'din 
Valhalla, val-h&l'a 
Ve, ve 
Vili, vele 
Ymir, e'mer 


OLD TESTAMENT 

Egypt, e'jlpt 

Firmament, fAr'ma-mgnt 
Hebrew, he'broo 
Israel, Iz'ra-Sl 
Jerusalem, jS-rob'sa-l&n 
Lebanon, 18b'a-n8n 
Psalteries, s61'ter-Iz 
Sheba, sheTia 
Solomon, sdl'd-mtin 

INDIAN 
Cahroc, ka'rbk 
Coyote, kb-yo'ta 
Medicine, mgd'l-sln 
Shanan, sha'nan 

HINDOO 
Geloori, gS-ldo'rl 
Shiva, she'va 

LATIN 

Conglomerate, k5n-gl5m'er-6t 
Pyre, pir 

ANGLO SAXON 

Mistletoe, mls'Tto 

MIDDLE ENGLISH 

Mermaid, mdr'mSd 
Laurel, 16'r6l 


Indian Nature Myths 

By JULIA DARROW COWLES* 7 

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